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The rejection of the Onondaga County Conservative Party leaders’ pick for district attorney in the recent primary election sent a strong message from voters. According to Onondaga County District Attorney William Fitzpatrick, the endorsement of a Democrat by the Conservative Party was a result of a political feud initiated by Tom Dadey, a vice chair of the party. Fitzpatrick claims that Dadey used his influence to pressure the party’s executive committee into endorsing Chuck Keller. However, this move backfired when political newcomer Christine Varga won the primary with 82% of the vote, compared to Keller’s 17%. Fitzpatrick sees this overwhelming rejection as a repudiation of Dadey’s divisive politics, stating that the Conservatives stand for less government while Dadey stands for targeting certain individuals. The feud between Fitzpatrick and Dadey began when the district attorney initiated an investigation into Dadey’s spending as chairman of the Onondaga County Republican Committee in 2019. No charges were filed, but Dadey switched his voter registration to the Conservative Party and Fitzpatrick lost the party’s nomination this year. Dadey believes that Fitzpatrick’s bitterness over losing the nomination led to a disinformation campaign against Keller, which contributed to his defeat. The election results have caused some Conservative Party members to call for Chairman Bernie Ment’s resignation, but Ment states that he intends to serve out his term. He admits that the party has made mistakes in the past and acknowledges the party’s current fracture. Tom Beaulieu, a long-time party member, proposes that those who supported Keller should step down from their leadership positions in order for the party to move forward. Beaulieu suggests that the conflict began when Dadey joined the executive committee, leading to the election of a Democrat pretending to be a conservative. In retrospect, Beaulieu believes that leaving the district attorney’s ballot line blank for the November election would have been the better option.
