Evans out of supervisor contention

Following a 328 to 466 loss to Austin F. Warner III in the September 9 Republican Primary, Ed Evans said it is time for him to walk away from Hamlin town government.

"Now I can retire," said Evans, who has been active in local politics for two decades. "This is definitely the end of my involvement in Hamlin politics. I want to thank everyone who has encouraged and supported me."

If true, Evans' departure should leave a large void in Hamlin's political scene. The retired earth science teacher has been actively involved in almost every aspect of town activity in recent history.

Warner said he hopes Evans will reunite with the Republican Party.

"I hope that Ed will climb back on board and we can work together to defeat the Democrats," said Warner. He said his focus is now on squaring off against Independent Peter Tonery who will be running for Supervisor on the Democratic slate and the new All Hamlin Party ballot.

"My driving force has been to beat Mr. Tonery again," said Warner. "In the 1999 election I beat him by a five to one margin (1,334 to 314). This time I want to beat him 10 to one."

Tonery said he was excited by the Republican Primary results. "We think this is good for us," said Tonery. "Evans' record as a community leader is far more impressive than Warner's."

Tonery said he would welcome any of Evans' supporters to shift their support to him. Evans said he hopes that the All Hamlin Party will be able to grow in strength. Evans said his candidacy helped to ignite the local Democrats and spark the creation of the All Hamlin Party.

Tonery said he and his colleagues will soon begin to make their case to the public.

Warner, however, feels that the Republican Primary was a sign of good things to come. "I am on an energy high right now which I will ride into November," said Warner. "I want to thank the local residents for believing in me and I promise I won't let them down."