Messenger Article #2

All I can say is, thank GOD the primary is only a few days away.

Tensions in the GOP as primary nears

By Philip Anselmo, staff writer
Daily Messenger
Posted Sep 12, 2009 @ 08:52 PM

Canandaigua, N.Y. —
Democrats and Republicans can certainly fire up a campaign, but that doesn’t mean political fireworks are limited to cross-party races. A recent inter-party squabble in the town of Canandaigua serves as an example.

Four Republican candidates are seeking the party’s nod for two open slots on the ballot to run in the general election this November for posts on the Town Board.

Two of those candidates, Terry Fennelly and Taryn Windheim, said they feel alienated by a “clique” that has formed within the town’s Republican committee, led by chairwoman Yvonne Chavez. Their fellow candidates, April Dawson and Pam Helming, see things differently, and Helming said any perceived tension is likely just the competitive mood of a party heading towards election time.

Windheim cites a recent instance when one of her election signs was removed by Chavez from a property on Route 21 in the hamlet of Cheshire.“Yvonne feels it was on private property,” said Windheim. “I felt it was on state property. If it was on private property, it should have been between myself and the homeowner. There wasn’t any reason for her to get involved.”

Chavez said she was “asked to remove a sign from private property since placement was not asked for and was not granted.”The candidates have different views regarding the party and the campaign.Dawson said she has “tried to remain positive and upbeat” through the campaign. At a recent gathering of all the candidates, she felt everyone got along quite well.“

People were very nice to each other,” she said. “For me, it showed the Republican party is really trying to come together in the spirit of cooperation.”But Fennelly offered a different perspective of where things stand, saying, “the town of Canandaigua Republican party is quite dysfunctional” right now. He said he and Windheim feel that some candidates are being supported, while others are not. He points to the example of Chavez having signs for Dawson and Helming in her yard, but not having signs for himself and Windheim.

“It seems to me that the GOP chairwoman would not pick somebody ahead of the primary,” he said. “But she apparently has.”Chavez said she has not “actively campaigned for any candidate” this year. “I have campaign signs in my yard — each candidate asked permission,” she said. “No other Republican candidate asked.”Helming said it was made clear that none of the candidates would receive any outright endorsement by the party until after the primary. Further, she said, any candidate can ask any committee member for personal support.

Windheim said she hasn’t felt any such sentiment of support from the committee’s leadership.“I’m so naive,” she said. “I thought, ‘We’re all Republicans, we’re all running ... and may the best man win,’ and that’s not how it worked out.”