DiNapoli stumps for Auerbach

DiNapoli stumps for Auerbach

KINGSTON – State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli was the keynote speaker at a well-attended fundraiser held in Kingston Tuesday night for the reelection of his Ulster County counterpart Elliott Auerbach. "I suspect he will win by a landslide," DiNapoli predicted. Under the then-new county charter, Auerbach, an Ellenville Democrat, was elected county comptroller in 2008 and 2010, for two and three year terms respectively. The 2014 race is for a full four-year term. Auerbach's original Republican opponent, Town of Ulster Supervisor James Quigley, dropped out of the race shortly after announcing his candidacy last summer. Quigley was replaced by Linda McDonough, a Lake Katrine resident. McDonough lost the Republican primary for county comptroller in 2010 to deputy county clerk Fawn Tantillo. Auerbach soundly defeated Tantillo in the general election that year. Tuesday's fundraiser was a Who's Who of local politics, attended by nearly every prominent Democrat in the county. "To me, the most important qualifications are to be an individual of integrity and independence," DiNapoli said of Auerbach. “In the years that I have known Elliott and have had the chance to work with him, I have always been struck by the fact that he is exactly the kind of person you want in public service – no nonsense, dedicated to the mission of serving people, someone you can absolutely trust – his character is strong and clear and outstanding – and he calls the shots as he sees them.” Auerbach praised DiNapoli as a role model for his own policies. "His respect for the duty he has to the taxpayers of New York, and the integrity of his office, are models of good government compliance, and has been touchstones to me to shape my own office," Auerbach said.