This is a letter to the editor written by Ithaca resident Ann Sullivan. It was not written by The Ithaca Voice. To submit letters to the editor, please submit them to Matt Butler at mbutler@ithacavoice.com.
To the Editor,
The Democratic primary is less than a month away and Democrats Leslie
Danks Burke and Lea Webb have a fair share of endorsements for State Senate. However, Lea Webb’s endorsers lean heavily toward out-of-district people and big money donors from New York City, California and DC. It is doubtful many of these out-of-district supporters could find their way to the Dryden Hotel or any of our local farm stands.
Tompkins County’s Leslie Danks Burke’s campaign is built on in-district support. Her latest fundraising filing reported that she almost doubled Webb’s haul, with Leslie receiving 90 percent of her contributions from residents of our region. This is not surprising. Leslie has spent her time on the trail talking to local voters and concentrating on issues that matter to us. She has listened attentively at zoom meetings with local seniors, neighborhood gatherings and while canvassing door to door. More important, she always lets us know what she believes. Unlike Webb, Leslie has published numerous op-eds and answered hard questions; she puts all her questionnaires on her website. We know how she stands on bail reform, the flow of illegal and ghost guns into our communities, violence in our cities and towns, the relentless rise in the cost of living and the threat to our democracy posed by recent Supreme Court decisions. Webb rarely, if ever, publicly comments on these issues. Most recently she refused to comment in another publication’s article on bail reform.
What is she hiding? Does she fear her views are too far out of the district mainstream?
Leslie Danks Burke has always been a straight talker and a champion for all of us who live and work in Tompkins, Cortland and now Broome County. She has earned the vote of this resident who actually must live with the consequences of her vote. Vote for Danks Burke on (or before!) August 23rd.
Best,
Ann Sullivan