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Pound Ridge Democrats Tap Boak To Run For Supervisor

POUND RIDGE, N.Y. – The Pound Ridge Democratic Committee named Town Board member Alison Boak as its candidate to run for supervisor in this November’s election.

The Pound Ridge Democrats' slate of candidates for the November elections, from left, Dan Paschkes, Sherene De Palma, Alison Boak and Ira Clair

The Pound Ridge Democrats' slate of candidates for the November elections, from left, Dan Paschkes, Sherene De Palma, Alison Boak and Ira Clair

Photo Credit: Bob Dumas
Pound Ridge supervisor candidate Alison Boak poses with state Rep. David Buchwald during the party's inaugural gala Saturday night.

Pound Ridge supervisor candidate Alison Boak poses with state Rep. David Buchwald during the party's inaugural gala Saturday night.

Photo Credit: Bob Dumas
Town Board candidate Sharene De Palma talks with supporters at the Democratic Inaugural Gala.

Town Board candidate Sharene De Palma talks with supporters at the Democratic Inaugural Gala.

Photo Credit: Bob Dumas
Roslyn Stone-Pollock, Pound Ridge Democratic Committee chair, announces the party's candidates.

Roslyn Stone-Pollock, Pound Ridge Democratic Committee chair, announces the party's candidates.

Photo Credit: Bob Dumas

The party held an inaugural gala at Conant Hall Saturday night where it announced its slate of candidates. Besides Boak, it tapped current board member Dan Paschkes for re-election. It also chose new-comer Sherene De Palma to run for Town Board. Ira Clair was selected to run for town justice.

Democrats “had a phenomenal election last November,” said Roslyn Stone-Pollock, Pound Ridge Democratic Committee chair. “We re-elected Obama and booted Nan Hayworth. We’ve revitalized our Democratic Committee and we’re more involved in getting the vote out. We have more Democrats registered (in Pound Ridge) than Republicans for the first time in several years.”

Stone-Pollock attributed the shift in party registration to the changing demographics in Pound Ridge.

“Older people are moving out and younger people are moving in who are more liberal,” she said.

Saturday night’s gala was the party’s first in four years.

“We had one four years ago and it was the single most successful Democratic event we ever had,” Stone-Pollack said. “We are coming out of the gate early this year because we feel we have something to say.”

Besides being a town board member, Boak has served on the Bedford School District’s Subcommittee on School District Budget Comparisons. She is co-founder of the Pound Ridge Partnership and is considered an internationally recognized advocate for children and authority on the issue of human trafficking. She co-founded the International Organization for Adolescents and spearheaded the creation of the Westchester County Anti-Trafficking Task Force, for which currently serves as advisor.

Paschkes, a current town board member, is a registered Democratic, but ran on the Republican line when he was elected three years ago. Paschkes, a lawyer with a practice in Yorktown Heights, was first elected to the board in 2001 and is currently in his third term.

De Palma is a commercial and family litigator, and mediator and a district leader for the Pound Ridge Democratic Committee.

Clair is the founding and managing partner of Clair & Gjertsen, a law firm active throughout the state in real estate, litigation, landlord-tenant, foreclosure, and bankruptcy cases.

Boak said that as a matter of courtesy she called current Pound Ridge Supervisor Gary Warshauer to let him know of her intentions to run for the office before the story was released to the media.

Warshauer “has been doing it for 10 years but there’s still a lot of stuff that needs to get done,” Boak said “He’s a nice guy, a sweet guy, but we just see things differently. We need new blood and fresh ideas.”

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