Edward A. Rath III touts his experience in the business world and on the Erie County Legislature in his race to replace retiring State Sen. Michael H. Ranzenhofer, a fellow Amherst Republican.
Jacqualine G. Berger points to her service on the Amherst Town Board and her years of work as an activist with local labor unions as she seeks to flip the seat to the Democrats, moving her party closer to a supermajority in the State Senate.
The stakes are high this year in the race for the 61st District, which covers urban, suburban and rural communities.
It includes the towns of Amherst, Clarence and Newstead, all of Genesee County and a small portion of Monroe County. There are about 10,000 more Democrats than Republicans among the district's roughly 202,000 registered voters.
Berger, 64, is a longtime organizer with United University Professions and New York State United Teachers, among other unions, and has taught at SUNY Empire State for about 20 years.
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"I am not in the business world," Berger said, referring to Rath. "We come from different backgrounds."
She had the party's endorsement in the Democratic primary for the 61st District earlier this year, when she fended off two opponents.
Berger has since 2018 served on the Amherst Town Board, where she said she has supported efforts to boost town infrastructure and find consensus on reviving the former Westwood Country Club and the Boulevard Mall.
Looking at the wider district, Berger said she wants to promote economic development that reaches everyone, including its many family farms. She also said the state needs to provide more resources for underfunded public K-12 schools and colleges, especially given their extra costs related to Covid-19.
One issue Berger said would benefit rural communities and urban schoolchildren is improving access to affordable, high-speed internet.
Rath, for his part, points to his experience with Varo Technologies, which advises companies on energy supply, natural gas and telecommunications issues.
The 53-year-old is running for the seat once held by his mother, former State Sen. Mary Lou Rath. The younger Rath said during his dozen years in the County Legislature he has never voted to raise taxes and his issues of focus included an upgrade of the county's E-911 system to improve its accuracy for people calling 911 from a cellphone.
"I've applied my financial knowledge," he said.
He said one immediate concern he would have as a state senator is improving transparency for how and why Covid-19 health restrictions were imposed on restaurants, movie theaters and other small businesses who have suffered financially from the pandemic.
About one month before Election Day, Rath reported having $119,000 on hand, while Berger had just $46,000. Berger's biggest supporters are the fundraising arms of statewide unions.
"I'm not beholden, but it's union values and beliefs that I want to take to Albany," she said.
Rath's biggest supporters are Ranzenhofer himself and a New York City-based, pro-landlord group. His largest individual donor is John Catsimatidis, a billionaire from Manhattan, who contributed $5,000.
"He believed in my vision for reform and positive improvements in Albany," said Rath, pointing to state taxes and business regulations.
But Berger said Catsimatidis is seeking to punish her for the town's fight to acquire through eminent domain a long-vacant, former gas station property he owned in Eggertsville.
