Delgado, Ryan and Collier present congressional campaigns at library

PINE PLAINS — The Pine Plains Democratic Committee wrapped up its local congressional campaign by presenting candidates Antonio Delgado, Pat Ryan and Erin Collier at the Pine Plains Free Library on Saturday, April 28.

Along with presenting their platforms for Congress, the candidates answered audience questions and concerns.

“Fundamentally, what motivated me is my story and where I come from,” Delgado said in reflection of his campaign.

Born into a working class family in Schenectady, Delgado takes pride in his family working its way up from working class to middle class. Through  his observations of his parents’ efforts to build a better future for him and for his younger brother, he learned the values of hard work, discipline, service and character. 

Delgado applied those values as he started his own company that focused on empowering young people to learn through music before taking on a second career as an attorney.

One of Delgado’s largest goals for his campaign includes addressing inequality, particularly in terms of jobs, health care and education. He wants an infrastructure bill to help generate economic growth in the region.

Born and raised in Kingston, Ryan values his roles as an active member of his community and as a member of a family that’s lived in the district for five generations. He answered the call to serve in the military following his graduation from West Point.

“After serving, I’ll have to come back and look people in the eye and say that I did my best,” Ryan said in reference to his qualifications as a congressional candidate.

Among some of his aspirations for Congress, he hopes to get the economy restarted, including lowering costs and implementing fair share taxes.

“I hear from people over and over that the amount of money coming in and out of their doors has been in decline for years,” he said, “so I will do everything I can to change that dynamic.”

Ryan aims to completely reinvent and improve the state’s education and training systems by training young people to earn a good living, making colleges more affordable and making community colleges and public universities accessible to everyone. He also plans to put more federal dollars toward apprenticeships and vocational training programs.

“We have a K through 12, but we have to talk about K through jobs,” Ryan said.

Other priorities in his campaign include preventing gun violence, protecting reproductive and equal pay rights for women, ramping up the district’s investment in its infrastructure and ensuring everyone in the district has reliable cell phone access and broadband internet.

For Collier, a large turning point in her decision to run for Congress surfaced during her participation in the 2017 Women’s March.

“I think that was a moment where I was horrified with who we elected president and what would happen in the years to come,” she said as she reflected on how empowering it was to witness so many men and women come together in support of the march.

“I felt as an educated eighth-generation woman and an agricultural economist, I had a lot to offer and that I could do something to help,” she added.

Given her experiences in growing up on a farm and her professional career working on federal policy, Collier said she believes more working class people should run for office — and that Congress is disconnected from the daily challenges people face. She also believes women need to have more say. As a congressional candidate, she aims to serve “and to make our lives better in NY-19, to help lift up everybody, not just the wealthiest portion of the population, and to contribute to a policy that will make our district proud.”

Having previously advocated and secured funding at the federal level to allow rural hospitals to continue providing their services, Collier plans to fight for Medicare for all to make sure everyone has access to health care and health care coverage. She also wants to address income inequality and make sure the district has a thriving economic environment that creates jobs. Other key areas in her campaign include fighting for environment policy and regulation, advocating to keep funding in the public education system, supporting funding for sanctuary cities and supporting immigration.

While each candidate had their own distinct back story, they all voiced their opposition to President Donald Trump and Congressman John Faso (R-19).

In view of the countless working class families left behind in their pursuit of the American Dream, Delgado described President Trump’s election as the manifestation of that struggle.

“His election was a wake-up call and made me think about everything going on,” he said.

He also expressed his opposition to Congressman John Faso  (R-19), noting his failed promises to support health care and Planned Parenthood.

“I think he doesn’t represent any meaningful plan for our area,” Delgado said. “It’s just anti-opportunity at the end of the day.”

“We have to take our country back from Trump and people like John Faso who are enabling him,” Ryan agreed.

“Over the year, watching what Trump and John Faso were doing, I felt I couldn’t watch any longer without doing something about it,” Collier said. 

For more information, constituents can voice their issues and concerns to Delgado via email at antonio@delgadoforcongress.com or through his website at www.delgadoforcongress.com. 

Ryan can also be contacted through his website at www.patryanforcongress.com.

Collier can be reached through the email list on her website at www.collierforcongress.com.