|
Former
prosecutor and current defense attorney Julie Garcia of Schroon Lake
won the Republican nomination for Essex County district attorney
Tuesday, defeating her two challengers by wide margin but all three
will face off again in November.
Garcia
garnered 2,025 votes with current first assistant district attorney
Debra Whitson of Willsboro collecting 1,752. Former Clinton County
prosecutor Kristy Sprague, now of Moriah, captured 1,479 voters. There
are still 300 absentee ballots to be counted.
Garcia
was the top vote getter in nine of the county’s towns with
Whitson winning seven towns including Chesterfield, Jay, Keene, Lewis,
North Elba, St. Armand and Willsboro.
Sprague won Ticonderoga and Wilmington.
Whitson
will appear on the November though as she won the Conservative Party
line taking home 25 votes. Garcia registered 17 and Sprague, 7. Sprague
will appear on the ballot as an Independent.
Outgoing
district attorney Ronald Briggs of Keene Valley lost in his bid to
become Essex County judge to fill the vacancy created by the retirement
of Judge Andrew Halloran.
Essex
County attorney Richard Meyer of Saranac Lake, endorsed by the
Republican Committee, defeated Briggs by an unofficial tally of 2,840
votes to 2,214. Meyer also won the Conservative Party line 31 to 19.
Briggs
only carried four towns in the county—Chesterfield, Keene, North
Elba and Ticonderoga. Briggs is finishing his third four-year term as
district attorney.
He
had originally announced that he would seek reelection and Whitson had
announced that she would seek the judgeship. However, they switched
races and the Republican Committee didn’t endorse either one.
9-15-05
|
