Don’t split the conservative vote in Putnam

Editor's Note: A few sentences were omitted from this letter because we could not independently verify the factual claims they contained. The letter’s central argument and the authors’ opinions remain intact.

Dear Editor,

For generations, we as registered Putnam Conservatives have stood for lower taxes, fiscal responsibility, public safety and limited government. The conservative line used to mean something. This year, our line has been compromised in the race for Putnam County Executive.

A mere three months before the general election, with no public case to Conservative voters, the party propped up Tatiana Brahimi.

That is not a nomination. It is a maneuver. The intent is obvious: split the Conservative vote to help elect Brett Yarris, the Democrat running on the Democratic Socialist’s Working Families and ‘For the People’ lines.

That is how New York City ended up with a DSA mayor: the center-right vote split, and the left did not. We cannot allow Putnam to repeat it.

County Executive Kevin Byrne is the true conservative on the ballot. Ten years of elected service, zero tax increases. As county executive, he enacted the largest county property-tax cut in Putnam history — $2.5 million off the levy over three years, the lowest county tax rate in 20 years, eliminated sales tax on essential clothes and shoes, suspended the county gas tax over $3 per gallon, cut long-term debt by more than half, and all with stronger savings to support future tax cuts.

When NYC tried to bus illegal migrants to our county, Byrne declared an emergency and enacted a local law to stop them, declaring Putnam County a ‘Rule of Law’ County, and making sure our county would never become a sanctuary county for illegal aliens. He opposed bail reform and the raid on first-responder personnel files. He’s taken on the big government bureaucracy and politicians like former Gov. Andrew Cuomo, Gov. Kathy Hochul, former NYC Mayor Bill DeBlasio, for NYC Mayor Eric Adams and NYC Mahopac Zohran Mamdani… and he’s won. He is a leader in the pro-life community and is endorsed by the New York State Right to Life Committee.

A vote on Row C for Brahimi will only help the radical Working Families candidate who has signed off on the party platform that supports defunding the police, open borders and socialized medicine.

A vote on Row B for Byrne, and on the Libertarian line (Row F), where he also appears, is a conservative vote for the candidate who actually governs like one.

True conservatives who want lower taxes, less debt, support for law enforcement, and a county executive who answers to the people should vote Row B.

-Conservative Coalition for Byrne, Mary-Ellen Cusick-Todd, Edward F. Todd, Francis Turtenwald, Joseph Horan, Denise Turtenwald, Art Hanley, Joseph Downey, Linda Lee Turtenwald and Ryan Horan