Rockland county executive: Day defeats Porette

Rockland County Executive Ed Day fended off a challenge from political neophyte Maureen Porette to win a second term on Tuesday night.

Day beat Porette 54 percent to 43 percent, according to unofficial returns from the Rockland County Board of Elections.

Thomas Sullivan, who held the Conservative Party line, collected just over 2 percent of the vote.

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Day entered the Doubletree ballroom to cheers and a standing ovation. He stood at the podium with his thumbs up, backed by his wife Jean, his campaign manager Daniel Weisberg and Deputy County Executive Guillermo Rosa.

Day reminded the cheering Republicans that four years ago “we promised to fix the county’s fiscal ship.” And then he said by year’s end, the county’s deficit of $138 million four years ago will be zero. The county took out a $98 million bond to close the gap.

He cited “an era of renewal and we’ve come full circle.”

“We will finish what we started,” he said.

He spoke of a “divide in Rockland County,” referring to animosity between the religious community in Ramapo and other residents. He said the human rights commissioner is working to bridge the differences.

“It doesn’t mean we can’t fix it,” Day said. “We have to find a common ground. I pledge I will go anywhere to make that outreach. We have to remember this is a two-way street. I stand on the credo, equal treatment for all, special preference for none.”

Earlier Tuesday evening, Porette gathered with fellow Democrats at the Nyack Seaport where she said she believed the "Trump effect" would bode well in Rockland, a county where registered Democrats outnumber Republicans. 

"It's time to get rid of the boys' club," she said, with early returns showing her in the lead. "I ran this campaign for everyone, not just one group."

Porette finally conceded just after midnight.

The position carries a four-year term and $155,000 annual salary.

Day, a Republican from New City who formerly served on the Rockland County Legislature, held a wide advantage in political experience and fundraising over Porette, a Stony Point lawyer running as a Democrat.

The campaign featured sharp exchanges over Rockland's deficit, which Day took credit for drastically lowering — a claim Porette said was overstated.

Day chided his opponent for her lack of experience, with Porette replying that Day's heavy-handed management style had stymied solutions that took a bipartisan approach, such as the sale of the county-owned Sain Building in New City.

The two also clashed over who was best suited to handle top issues facing the county, including continuing the county's economic turnaround and curbing overdevelopment.

During the campaign's final days, Day released information showing Porette and her ex-husband owed more than $6,500 in county property taxes. She acknowledged the tax debt and missing a fourth-quarter $1,720 installment in October, saying her former husband had been laid off for nearly a year.

Porette, a longtime social justice activist, in turn blasted the incumbent for his campaign mailing that released her voter registration form — including her name, date of birth and driver's license number.

Day said the mailing was intended to illustrate the fact that Porette was claiming she's a Democrat while still being registered as a Republican.

Staff writers Steve Lieberman and Kim Redmond contributed to this article.