Minor parties played a limited role in 2021 Erie County elections

New York State is among the few states that allow fusion voting, the process where a candidate for public office can appear on more than one political party line on an election ballot.  The strategy is that having more than one line increases the possibilities of a successful election.

One frequently cited legend related to the benefits of fusion voting is the fact that no Republican in the past fifty years has been elected to statewide office without also having the endorsement of the Conservative Party.  The thing about legends is that they aren’t always all they are cracked up to be.

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Thanksgiving

It’s been a very difficult couple years and this country is not out of the woods yet. There is still too much pain and dying as COVID numbers rise again.

Too much anger, hatred and even glee on the part of some Americans to operate with impunity with their words and actions as innocent people are hurt or killed.

We might all need to dig a little deeper to decide what we are thankful for in 2021, but give it a try. Start with family and friends, even when national divisions have sometimes made that harder.

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