Democrat Ken Dow launches bid for state Senate seat
February 27, 2008
A law student and former head of the Columbia County Democratic Committee has emerged as a candidate for the state’s 41st Senate District.
Ken Dow, 47, of Mellenville, a hamlet in the Columbia County town of Claverack, will seek the Democratic nomination to the seat currently held by 18-year incumbent Republican Sen. Steve Saland of Poughkeepsie.
“As long as I can remember, I have believed in the vital role of principled public service,” Dow said in a press release announcing his candidacy. “I have tried to live up to that standard as a public official and elected party leader.
“What we need now are leaders in Albany with a more vigorous commitment to getting things done on the most important and urgent matters affecting our lives, homes and families,” he said. ìI am running to provide that.”
Dow, a 1983 graduate of Harvard University, is a student at Albany Law School.
As a law student, Dow said, he “has focused on subjects that affect everyday lives, such as state and local government and taxation, land use law, labor law, and children and the law.”
From 2005-07, Down served as the Democratic elections commissioner for Columbia County and as chairman of the county Democratic Committee.
Dow also has worked in the state Office of Regulatory Reform and with the minority counsel and Democratic Conference in the state Senate.
“Each step has made clearer the extent of the work that needs to be done, the great gap between what is being done and what should be done, and my own ability to make unique and effective contributions toward progress in challenging areas,” he said.
Saland, 63, has not announced his election plans.
A town of Poughkeepsie resident, Saland first was elected to the state Senate in 1990 after serving 10 years in the Assembly. He holds a bachelor’s degree from SUNY Buffalo and a law degree from Rutgers University.
He chairs the Senate Education Committee and the Majority Steering Committee.
The 41st Senate District encompasses all of Dutchess and Columbia countiesSource: Daily Freeman
Related Articles
- Errant e-mail costs GOP chief post
- Cuomo to check if state police were used for politics
- Congressional candidates will debate at least once
- Democrats Endorse John Degnan a GOP candidate
- Potential Molinaro foe surfaces
Comment on this article
