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Upset Victory
in Plattsburg Mayoral Race
PLATTSBURGH, NY — Dan Stewart made New York state history on Election Day when he staged an upset victory to become the only openly gay mayor of a city in all of New York state.
Stewart, a Republican, shocked the political establishment in the city just across Lake Champlain from Burlington, Vt, when he ousted five-term incumbent Mayor Clyde Rabideau, a Democrat who lost his party’s nomination for lieutenant governor last year.
“I think I live in a city that knows how to treat people decently,” said Stewart. “It’s a huge win. It’s something they said we couldn’t do.”
Indeed, his win was not expected. A poll in September said Stewart trailed Rabideau by more than 30 percentage points.
“We won because we dealt with issues,” Stewart said.
A campaign stop by New York Governor George Pataki, also a Republican, didn’t hurt, either.
Pataki said Stewart’s victory proved that the Republican Party is inclusive.
“It think it shows what I have been saying all along, that the Republican
Party is an open and tolerant party,” Pataki said at a news conference with Stewart the day after he won. “The fact that Dan is openly gay, I think, is not going to affect in any way his ability to govern the city one way or the other.”
“He has a great vision for Plattsburgh,” Pataki said.
Stewart said his first order of business after he takes over City Hall would be putting together a youth commission to determine the city’s long-range recreational needs. He also wants to hire another person in the Community Development Office.
Prior to his election, Stewart was a used car salesman in Plattsburgh. He has been involved in city politics for six years, serving on the city council.
Stewart was in the Air Force when he moved to Plattsburgh in 1984, and remained in the city when he left the military in 1988.
In some ways, Stewart seemed to be more excited about the fact that he’d beaten Rabideau than that he’d become the first openly gay mayor in New York.
“We had to beat a five-term incumbent. I don’t know of any other challenge that could be more difficult,” Stewart said.