Brighton Town Board member Robin Wilt withdrew from the 136th Assembly District race Friday afternoon. The reason, she said, is that there’s still work to do in the town, particularly when it comes to issues of race, diversity, and equity.
Wilt’s brief Assembly campaign, which began soon after she lost the Democratic primary for the late Louise Slaughter’s Congressional seat, wasn’t without rough patches. She faced a lawsuit challenging whether she met the residency requirements for an Assembly candidate, which she dismissed as a factor in her decision.
And earlier Friday, some media outlets reported that Wilt’s campaign manager, Wynette Vickers, was convicted of mail fraud and identity theft in 2011 and sentenced to prison. “I think that people who have served their debts to society deserve full reentry into our society,” Wilt told media including WHEC and the Democrat and Chronicle.
Following her remarks late Friday afternoon in the gazebo at Twelve Corners in Brighton, she said the revelations about Vickers weren’t a factor.
Wilt said she’s withdrawing from the Assembly race because she can’t abandon Brighton in a time of racial discord. As a Town Board member, Wilt led the creation of the Inclusion, Diversity, and Equity Advisory Committee, and during her remarks Friday afternoon, she said she wants to work with the committee.
She referred to her history as an activist, which she has said is what fueled her decision to enter politics and government. And, she said, at the last Brighton Town Board meeting she got a reminder of why she entered public service. Keniyah Vickers, the daughter of Wilt’s campaign manager, Wynette Vickers, talked to the Town Board about inequity and inequality in the Brighton schools, and how she and other black students have been treated unfairly, according to media reports.
“We have work to do at home,” Wilt said.
Wilt delivered an impassioned speech that started by touching on her upbringing as the daughter of immigrants, and she talked about her father’s repeated advice to his daughters that they’d have to be three times as good as their white counterparts to achieve half the recognition. He had noted that as black people, the family faced structural barriers, Wilt said.
She moved on to her run for the 136th Assembly District seat. She and her supporters began the campaign knowing it’d be difficult, she said; they were entering late, and there were administrative hurdles. The campaign was first marginalized and ridiculed, then underestimated, then treated as a threat, she said.
“We knew that our movement was strong, that our cause remained just, that we would win,” she said.
And she referenced how black women have been fighting for their families and for their fair share since “time immemorial.” As she campaigned, she got caught up in some bigger fights, but Keniyah Vickers’ remarks reminded her of why she got into public service in the first place. And Wilt said she believes she has an important role to play as the sole person of color on the Brighton Town Board, which is otherwise made up of white men.
Wilt’s withdrawal for the race leaves Jamie Romeo, chair of the Monroe County Democratic Committee; Jaclyn Richard, president of the Rochester chapter of the National Organization for Women; and Todd Grady, who works in real estate sales, in the running for the Democratic line on general election ballot. The seat is current held by Joe Morelle, who is seeking election to Congress.
This post has been corrected.
This article appears in Jul 25-31, 2018.
At least there’s Jaclyn Richard who is far more qualified than Romeo.
Both women are well-qualified.
But Romeo should not get this position simply because she was a loyal party servant. She’s already too entrenched with the status quo. Say no to machine politics.
Gee, and here I thought that Wilt was one of those “non-traditional” candidates who was going to lead us all to the Promised Land. Would have been a hoot if she’d won the Democratic congressional primary, wouldn’t it?
Gawd. More complaints about “machine politics”. By which I assume the complainers mean anyone who actually knows what they’re doing.
Before the Congressional primary, few people had heard of Robin Wilt. But after seeing her stumble her way through two debates, failing to deliver a cogent response to even rudimentary questions, it is clear that she probably is not even qualified to serve on a local town board – much less state or federal office. You wonder if the voters in Brighton have buyer’s remorse with her.
One thing about her that is crystal clear is that she must be seen as a victim. This sense of victimization is very much a part of her DNA and she had to spin her withdrawal from the race as victimization. That’s all she really has to offer. The sooner she disappears from the local political scene, the better.
I seems odd that many will comment that few people had heard of Robin Wilt as if that is her problem. Robin was on the Congressional primary ballot for the 25th Congressional district. If the public is not educated enough to know that, it is their loss. Ask someone like me and I would tell you that Wilt is very well known starting back when she ran for NY State Senate in 2010 .
Tom – I see one comment stating that Wilt was not well known. Please explain why that was hyperbolically transformed into “many” comments.
Timothy, I did not say many people in this thread commented; I was speaking from overall experience and what I have heard during the campaigns.
If someone never heard of a candidate who is on a ballot, that person failed to educate themselves about the election. That is sad and common. Don’t citizens/voters have some responsibility to both vote and know who is on a ballot? Anyone who has been on a local ballot 4 times should be known by voters. But low voter turnout shows that too few people take voting seriously, wouldn’t you agree?
Tom Interesting word “educate”. In an unbiased sense it can mean, “to give intellectual, moral, and social instruction to oneself and to others”, while simultaneously meaning to fall for or disseminate propaganda. And most amazingly, many (such as Trump’s Deplorables and the self-described progressives who backed Sanders and similar local hot-air candidates) honestly (and sanctimoniously) believe they’re engaging in the former when in reality they’ve been suckered into the later.
By the way, if this paper’s Thought Police are going to rewrite someone’s comments, it would behove them to at least point out that they did so so that it’s clear that the posted comment has been tampered with.
I don’t know what anyone else does and I really don’t care. I educate myself using as much information and as many sources as possible. In the end I make a decision. If you want to replace the word “educate” with “make aware”, that’s fine too, but when I use the word “educate” for myself, it carries with it at least the idea that I am using credible sources and ignoring propaganda.
Beyond knowing candidates and their stand on the issues, voters first and foremost need to be aware of primary elections. I am still hearing from many people that they didn’t vote because they didn’t know about the primary.
Tom – With all due respect, as I already pointed out, there are millions of Trump voters who are just as positive as you that they have educated themselves, “using as much information and as many sources as possible”, and that in the end they, “make a decision” using that information. And they too would claim that they are, “using credible sources and ignoring propaganda.” At the end of the day, they too would argue, as you have, that their opponents are not educated. To me it looks like self-justification for personal biases by both sides.
On the issue of a lack of participation by so many voters, I see no way to force people to vote in primaries and general elections, nor am I aware of any studies which indicate that higher voter participation percentages would result in any significantly different outcomes in the various political contests.
Tim…no longer sure of the point of this discussion. Are you more comfortable believing no voters are truly, properly or accurately educated with nothing but facts?
I can only speak for myself and I’m doing just fine. I also don’t care nor can control how other people get educated or not.