There is a Democratic primary on June 27 that will determine who will oppose Republican incumbent Greg Pulver in the general election for Dutchess County representing District 19. The towns that make up the district include Pine Plains, Stanford, Milan, North East/Millerton and a sliver of Red Hook. Early voting is June 17 to 25 at the Rhinebeck Town Hall and at the Mid-Hudson Library Auditorium in Poughkeepsie.
The two candidates are Chris Drago of Stanfordville and Claire Owens of Millerton. I spoke with each of them at Rosey’s recently. They are profiled below in the order in which I met with them.
Claire Owens
Two years ago, Owens lost to Pulver by 315 votes. “We can make that up,” she said. Owens added, “Hearing and watching how little gets done is irritating,” and she wants to serve as a strong link between constituents and the Legislature.
Owens, the youngest of five, was born in Long Island, raised in Brooklyn and has lived in Millerton for 16 years. She experienced food and housing insecurity growing up, which makes her “empathetic to the challenges people face,” she said. Since her mother moved to a bungalow on Route 22, the family has felt at home. She said they love the community feel and walkability of Millerton.
Owens worked in financial services in New York City after attending the College of Mount St. Vincent in the Bronx. She moved back home to help care for her mother after a stroke and got involved locally, serving on the Millerton Zoning Board of Appeals from 2012 to 2014. Currently Owens is a consultant for non-profit organizations (in public relations and grant writing), particularly those that work for veterans.
As Owens sees it, District 19’s priorities are not getting the attention they deserve. “Our corner of the county is being neglected,” she said. She cited the $25 million that the County Legislature, which has a Republican supermajority, allotted to Heritage Financial Park, the minor league baseball stadium in Fishkill. (The county comptroller had recommended that the amendment to fund the stadium improvements be tabled.) “We could have sidewalks, sewers, wastewater systems if each town in the district had a million of those dollars,” Owens said. “Infrastructure issues are critical. We need to invest in our communities—make them a destination, not a stop-off.”
For Owens, “kitchen table issues” are what keep her coming back to running for office. She supports allocating funds for Dutchess Community College to offer free credits to high school students in need. “We should have affordable housing, education, invest in local farmers,” she said. “Farmers in my generation are few and far between, and we’re the bread basket of the state.”
Owens said she is busy campaigning, “going out into the community, meeting people where they are.” When she knocks on doors in rural areas, she added, “I sit down with people who say, ‘No one has ever asked me what I think is important.’”
Chris Drago
When Drago’s Aunt Fee fell and broke her hip four years ago in Pine Plains, she had to wait two hours for emergency services to arrive. The incident was a large factor in his decision to enter the race. “The county can and should play a role in emergency services,” he said. “The volunteers are great, but the county should not leave it all up to the towns.” He wants to be sure the basic needs of families and communities in this district are met.
Drago also objects to the passage of the last-minute budget amendment to fund $25 million in renovations to the minor league stadium where the Renegades play. This was passed “without public comments or due process,” he said.
Drago grew up in Clinton Corners and went to Millbrook School, where the motto is, “Not for oneself, but for all.” After graduating from Vassar College he worked in digital marketing in London and New York City. He became an executive, managing teams, overseeing $100 million budgets and negotiating deals with large companies. But this area remained home. He frequently returned to see family and friends and eventually settled in Stanfordville with his partner. He has been active in the campaigns of Stanford Town Board members and is now working on his own campaign full-time.
Drago paused his campaigning briefly when his only sibling, Elizabeth, died recently. She was always supportive of his endeavors, and he believes she would want him to stay in the race and continue to serve the community. He is on the board of the Sharon Playhouse, focusing on its education program because community theater was important to him as a child. Even in his work with a start-up company, he said he used improvisations to “help ensure that team members brought their full selves to the work.”
To Drago, infrastructure is a high priority in Millerton and Pine Plains. “We’re holding business back from developing without infrastructure,” he said. He also stressed the need for workforce housing and believes that family farms should be considered a national resource. “The Renegades’ stadium is listed as a county park, while family farms are struggling to survive,” Drago said. “We have to do what we can—more than is being done now.”
“I’ve been doing a lot of listening and I’m trying to figure out where there’s the need for help,” Drago added. “People are getting excited. I see hope in their eyes. It keeps me motivated.”