Ashland Republican Party Holds Caucus

Town of Ashland held its Republican Party caucus, last week, selecting six candidates for the November election. On hand for the occasion were (seated) GOP chairman Howard Drum and candidates (standing, left to right) Chris Hamilton (town supervisor), Richard Tompkins (highway superintendent) and Christine Matista (town justice).

By Michael Ryan

ASHLAND - They got started 20 minutes late, last Thursday night, when the town of Ashland held its Republican Party caucus.

A sizable crowd showed up for what is usually a bing, bang, boom affair, with Democrats hard to find in this small, rural community.

“It’s like we’re giving away free strawberry shortcake,” GOP chairman Howie Drum quipped after all were finally signed-in and seated.

The big reason for the much-larger-than-usual gathering was the exodus of longtime town supervisor Richard Tompkins, a born-and-raised-here kid with nearly a half-century of public service.

Over the years, Tompkins has alternately held the positions of supervisor, town justice and volunteer fire chief, also playing a major role in the operation of and service with the Ashland ambulance corps.

He has decided to step aside but there was a twist to his supposed political departure. Tompkins was instead running for highway superintendent, a post currently held by his brother Larry Tompkins.

Actually there were two twists. Tompkins has historically run unopposed, being one of the more popular and dedicated officials in the mountains.

Republican candidates in fact are rarely if ever challenged, but in the days leading up to the caucus, Tompkins learned he would be opposed by Robert Drum, a son of the GOP boss.

First up on the slate was the supervisor’s race where Chris Hamilton and Mark Skula, both relative newcomers to town, were vying for the spot.

It was widely speculated that Hamilton, a political rookie, was the choice of the outgoing supervisor who, if all went according to plan, would be on hand as the roads chief to lend his experience.

As it turned out, that contest contained a dramatic element too. Shortly after the paper ballots were counted, a revote was called by Greene County Board of Elections Republican Party clerk Sara Bentley.

Bentley had been asked to oversee the proceedings, which everyone anticipated would be well attended, and discovered a fatal flaw.

There were four more paper ballots cast than listed on the sign-in sheet, resulting in the do-over, stretching out the suspense.

When the suspense finally ended, following a slow parade of voters to the front table for the recasting, the victor by a 59 to 39 count was Hamilton, announced by the caucus secretary as “our new town supervisor.”

It was somewhat premature, with the election five months away, but no one protested. What happens at the GOP caucus in Ashland is as guaranteed as anything in life to be a done deal.

This is Hamilton’s maiden plunge into political leadership. He and his wife moved to Ashland from Catskill three years ago.

He has a background in Finance, serves as a volunteer firefighter and was a candidate for the Greene County Legislature.

“We wanted to be somewhere where we had land around us. We found a great community,” Hamilton said.

“I know the town needs to move forward. At the same time, it is important to keep Ashland, Ashland. We love this town. I want to give back to the town we live in,” Hamilton said.

Up next was the highway superintendent determination. A second parade ensued and when it was over, Tompkins prevailed with 76 votes to 23 for Drum, a very successful and busy local plumber.

No procession was necessary for the remaining offices which were all unopposed and dominated by incumbents.

Dawn Thorp was renominated as town clerk, continuing a long career. Jeff Gonzalez and Scott Tuttle were picked to return to the town council.

One change did occur. Christine Matista was selected to replace town judge Kristen Leach who recently retired due to career commitments.