Introduction

The Empire State Pride Agenda is the statewide, bi-partisan civil rights and political advocacy organization dedicated to winning equality and justice for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) New Yorkers and our families. We are committed to seizing all opportunities in the political and legislative arenas to advance our public policy goals and pursue our public policy agenda. Electing and appointing supporters of LGBT issues at all levels of government, educating candidates, and endorsing and providing campaign assistance to those who support our public policy agenda are important tools we use to achieve our goals. We believe that by supporting candidates for elected office, we increase the number of allies in government, solidify the commitment of current allies and hold opponents accountable.


Endorsement Criteria

When deciding whether to endorse in a particular race, the Pride Agenda considers a number of factors including whether the endorsement: furthers our public policy agenda in Albany, allows for coalition building with strategic allies, results in significant community or capacity building within the LGBT community, contributes to the election of LGBT candidates, and allows for specific public education on an issue of importance or has the potential to influence the outcome of an election.

We make our specific endorsement decisions based on responses to the Pride Agenda candidate questionnaire; an examination of a candidate's voting record (for those who have previously held elective office) and the voting record of their opponent; and a review of his or her public acts, statements, and consultations with other organizations throughout New York State, including local LGBT organizations. Non-incumbents are evaluated based upon the criteria above as well as the viability of their campaigns.

Candidates request consideration of an endorsement by completing and returning a Pride Agenda candidate questionnaire. Those who do not complete a questionnaire are not considered for endorsement.


About Our 2009 Endorsements

The Pride Agenda has endorsed twelve candidates for local races in the 2009 general election on November 3. Some elected officials who are friends of the LGBT community are not profiled in the voter guide because they did not seek the endorsement of the Pride Agenda.

The Pride Agenda did not endorse any candidate who took a position contrary to our public policy agenda. Endorsed candidates stated their support for all the issues at the top of our agenda, including marriage equality for same-sex couples; prohibiting discrimination based on gender identity and expression; protecting students from bias-based harassment; and increasing the availability of state funding for community-based organizations providing LGBT-specific health and human services.


Voting Information

To find out where you can vote, click here. In order to vote in the general election, you must have mailed in your voter registration form no later than October 9, 2009.

Endorsements:
Binghamton
Mayor of the City of Binghamton - Matthew Ryan (D-WFP), Incumbent
Matthew Ryan has served as the Mayor of Binghamton since 2005. Previously, he was the Broome County Public Defender. An active supporter of the local LGBT community, Mayor Ryan has taken a stand against discrimination by signing a local law to reinforce existing protections against discrimination in employment, housing and education based on sexual orientation and expand those protections to include gender expression and identity. He has also stated his unequivocal support for marriage equality, and in June 2007, he signed an executive order recognizing same-sex marriages legally performed in other jurisdictions as fully valid in the City of Binghamton. In April 2009, he also issued a strong statement in support of the Governor's marriage equality bill and signed a joint statement with the Binghamton City Council urging its passage. Mayor Ryan has proudly stood with the LGBT community on numerous occasions at Pride events and conferences and has made a commitment to continue to work toward equality and justice for all Binghamton residents. His opponents did not respond to our request to submit a candidate questionnaire seeking the Pride Agenda’s endorsement.
Rochester and Monroe County
Mayor of Rochester – Robert Duffy (D-I), Incumbent
Bob Duffy has served as the Mayor of Rochester since 2006. Previously, he served as Rochester’s Chief of Police, where he was also the LGBT liaison for the department. Mayor Duffy announced his full support for marriage equality in May 2009 in an op-ed in the Rochester Democrat & Chronicle saying, “The right to marry is a fundamental human right that is being denied to an entire class of people solely because of who they are. It's not fair, it's not right and it's not American.”  A few weeks later in June at the 77th Annual Meeting of the U.S. Conference of Mayors, Bob Duffy played a leading role in the passage of a resolution putting the U.S. Conference of Mayors on record in support of marriage equality for same-sex couples.   By raising his voice on the issue during this critical time in the 2009 state legislative session, Mayor Duffy joined a growing number of local and statewide elected officials making their stance clear and urging State Senators to take up and pass marriage equality legislation. He is running unopposed.
Rochester City Council– Matt Haag (D-WFP), At Large Race
Matt Haag is currently Senior Director of Major Gifts and Regional Programs for the University of Rochester.  As an openly gay man he has served as a tireless advocate for LGBT equality and justice in the Rochester community and works with numerous LGBT organizations to help achieve these goals.  There has been a quarter-century of openly LGBT representation on the Rochester City Council, and Haag’s election would continue this proud tradition. After winning his Primary, he is running unopposed for one of five at-large seats on the Council.
Brighton Town Supervisor - Sandra Frankel (D-I-WFP), Incumbent
Sandra Frankel has served as the Supervisor of the Town of Brighton since 1992. A staunch supporter of the LGBT community, she was one of the first elected officials to proactively announce in 2004 that her locality would recognize the legal out-of-state marriages of same-sex couples as fully valid, in response to then Attorney General Spitzer saying they must be treated as such. Supervisor Frankel’s long record of work on behalf of the LGBT community over the years includes:  leading efforts to have non-discrimination based upon sexual orientation made part of Brighton’s Equal Employment Opportunity policy before the Sexual Orientation Non-Discrimination Act (SONDA) became state law; providing domestic partner benefits for town employees; and chairing a NYS Democratic Party task force in 2001 that recommended equal treatment under the law for LGBT people, including access to marriage for same-sex couples. Frankel is running unopposed.
Monroe County Legislature, District 24 – Harry Bronson (D-WFP), Incumbent
Harry Bronson has served as a Monroe County Legislator for the 24th District since 2006 and is currently the Minority Leader.  As an openly gay man and an attorney, he has been a strong advocate for equal rights for LGBT New Yorkers and has a long record of involvement with numerous human rights and LGBT organizations, including The Gay Alliance of the Genesee Valley, Rainbow Seniors of Western New York and MOCHA Project.  Before being elected to the County Legislature, he was actively involved in passage of Rochester's domestic partner benefits law and the domestic partner registry. With the possibility that the Democrats could become the Majority this year for the first time in many years, Bronson would be in a position to move the County Legislature to adopt pro-LGBT policies and pass pro-LGBT legislation, something the Legislature has never done.  Under the current Majority, the Legislature has resisted all efforts to provide equality for LGBT people and has supported the County Executive’s unsuccessful legal efforts to refuse spousal health benefits to LGBT county employees with legal out-of-state marriage licenses (Martinez v. County of Monroe).  His opponent did not respond to our request to submit a candidate questionnaire seeking the Pride Agenda’s endorsement.
Monroe County Legislature, District 19 – Jo Meleca-Voigt (D-WFP), Challenger
Jo Meleca-Voigt is a teacher in the Greece Central School District and is a tireless advocate for LGBT equality and justice.  She is a Board Member of the Gay Alliance of the Genesee Valley and has been an integral part of the Pride Agenda’s Marriage Ambassador program, which has resulted in many new activists getting involved in the Genesee Valley around marriage equality and other LGBT issues.  If elected, she would be the first openly lesbian elected official in Monroe County government.  Her opponent, the incumbent, did not respond to a request to submit a candidate questionnaire seeking the Pride Agenda’s endorsement.
Nassau County
Nassau County Executive – Tom Suozzi (D-I-WFP), Incumbent
Tom Suozzi has served as the Nassau County Executive since 2002 and is running for his third term. Previously, Suozzi was Mayor of Glen Cove. Suozzi announced his support for marriage equality for the first time in June 2009 in an eloquent op-ed in The New York Times, in which he stated that since he ran for Governor in 2006 and supported civil unions, he has listened to arguments on both sides of the issue and realized his position was “wrong.” He further stated, “Gays and lesbians have suffered too long from legal discrimination, social marginalization and even violence. They are entitled to clear recognition of their equal status as citizens of a country that is founded on the principle that we are all inherently worthy. By delivering a clear message that same-sex couples can no longer be treated as separate and unequal in New York, we will also reduce discrimination in everyday life. We will all be better for that.” By raising his voice on marriage equality during this critical time in the 2009 state legislative session, Suozzi joined a growing number of local and statewide elected officials making their stance clear and urging State Senators to take up and pass marriage equality legislation. His opponent did not respond to our request to submit a candidate questionnaire seeking the Pride Agenda’s endorsement.
Nassau County Legislature, District 14 - Dave Mejias (D-I-WFP), Incumbent
Dave Mejias has served as the Nassau County Legislator for the 14th District since 2004. He is an attorney and managing partner of his firm. A longtime supporter of the LGBT community, he publicly supported and voted to create a domestic partnership registry in Nassau County in 2006, a measure that was defeated in a close vote. On his support of LGBT issues, he states “I have always tried to do what is right, even when it isn’t popular.”  His opponent did not respond to our request to submit a candidate questionnaire seeking the Pride Agenda’s endorsement.
New York City
New York City Council, District 3 – Christine Quinn (D-WFP), Incumbent
In August, the Pride Agenda issued an endorsement for Christine Quinn for both the Primary and General Elections.  Christine Quinn has always been a vocal advocate for LGBT issues. She has worked successfully to pass numerous pieces of pro-LGBT legislation in the New York City Council, including bills that address domestic partner benefits, transgender rights and safer schools for LGBT youth. She has also combated hate and violence against LGBT New Yorkers since her earliest days on the Council. On the issue of marriage equality for all New Yorkers and their families, Christine Quinn has fought tirelessly with us to pass the bill and has taken the extra step of going to Albany and the home districts of Democratic and Republican State Senators to share her personal story about why marriage matters to our families. Her opponent did not respond to our request to submit a candidate questionnaire seeking the Pride Agenda’s endorsement.
New York City Council, District 26 – Jimmy Van Bramer (D-WFP), Open Seat
Jimmy Van Bramer is currently the Chief External Affairs Officer for the Queens Public Library.  As an openly gay activist, he has long history of community activism and organizing around LGBT issues and would continue that activism on the City Council.  Van Bramer was formerly a reporter for Lesbian and Gay New York, the community newspaper that became Gay City News and was among the founders of the Queens Pride House a decade ago.  His opponent did not respond to our request to submit a candidate questionnaire seeking the Pride Agenda’s endorsement.
Syracuse
Mayor of Syracuse - Stephanie Miner (D-WFP), Open Seat
Stephanie Miner is currently a member of the Syracuse Common Council, where she has served since 2001. A longtime supporter of LGBT equality, she was the original sponsor of a resolution to raise the rainbow flag during Pride celebrations at Syracuse City Hall. If elected, Miner will be the first Mayor of Syracuse to support marriage equality and will join the ranks of many other large city New York State mayors who do the same and have pledged to work toward equality and justice for all LGBT New Yorkers. Miner’s opponent did not respond to our request to submit a candidate questionnaire seeking the Pride Agenda’s endorsement.
Westchester County
Westchester County Executive - Andy Spano (D-C-WFP), Incumbent
Andy Spano has served as Westchester County Executive since 1998. Prior to that, he served as Westchester County Clerk from 1982 to 1994. Since his last re-election in 2005, Spano has announced his support for marriage equality, and in 2006 he issued an Executive Order directing the County to respect the legal out-of-state marriages of same-sex couples as fully valid in Westchester.  This directive was challenged by an anti-gay legal group from outside New York State, The case, Godfrey v. Spano, has been upheld in both lower and mid-level courts and is currently awaiting a decision from the state’s highest court, the Court of Appeals.  In 2009 under Spano’s watch, Westchester amended its human rights laws to prohibit discrimination based on gender identity and expression. During his years as County Executive, Spano has led Westchester County in taking steps to be inclusive and respectful of its LGBT residents, including: establishing a County Human Rights Commission; providing support to local community-based LGBT organizations like The Loft; and creating an LGBT Advisory Board that was successful in having LGBT issues training added to the curriculum for the Westchester County Police Academy.  His opponent did not respond to our request to submit a candidate questionnaire seeking the Pride Agenda’s endorsement.