Utica, NY – Anthony Brindisi and Danielle Fogel, the two candidates for local State Supreme Court office this election, went to the same schools in Utica and graduated from Catholic high school together there At 25 years.

Now, childhood friends find themselves as adversaries in a big-budget race for a coveted judge’s post to be decided by voters in six central New York counties, ranging from Syracuse to Utica. This is a new judicial opening created earlier this year by the state legislature: it remains to be seen where the judge will be assigned.

But Brindisi – a campaign veteran – and Fogel – a political newcomer with long-standing aspirations – both jumped at the chance to run for the newly created post.

Brindisi, a Democrat, has just suffered a crushing defeat in his bid for a second term in the United States House of Representatives.

Fogel, a Republican, is president of the Onondaga County Bar Association, past president of the Women’s Bar, and current board member of the McMahon-Ryan Child Advocacy Center.

Bar associations in the region assessed the two highly qualified to become judges.

Both have courtroom experience as lawyers. They both have spouses and school-aged children, mutual friends and shared experiences of being in the same grade of elementary school until graduation from Notre Dame High School. Utica.

But their policy is quite different.

Fogel received endorsement from U.S. Representative Elise Stefanik, Third Row Republican, Onondaga County Director Ryan McMahon, Onondaga County Veterans Party and several police unions, including the Onondaga County Deputy Sheriff’s Police Association.

Brindisi’s backers include the local Democratic state legislative delegation (Rachael May, John Mannion, Pam Hunter and Al Stirpe), Onondaga County Comptroller Marty Masterpole and several labor and professional groups, including the Central Labor Council. from New York.

Fogel points to her decades of experience as a lawyer and court mentor, who has never sought political office before and says she has wanted to be a judge for many years.

“I’m a litigator and love it,” Fogel said of his experience.

She said her goal is to take what she’s learned in front of the bench and put it behind. Being a good judge is not a slogan; rather, it’s about having the experience and the temperament to help people resolve disputes effectively and fairly, she said.

“You want a judge who has the experience, the temperament and the integrity and someone who applies the law,” Fogel said. “Our job is not to make the law … Our job is to resolve disputes effectively and efficiently. “

Before going to Syracuse University law school, Fogel spent a year as a forensic scientist in the state police. She’s a self-proclaimed science geek who has turned her attention to the details into a legal career that has tackled a wide variety of cases and in recent years has focused on defending against medical malpractice.

Brindisi made his two years in Washington DC and his seven years as a member of the Assembly in Albany an advantage, despite not being allowed to speak on most political issues during the trial campaign and seek employment that avoids partisan politics in favor of impartiality. Since leaving Washington, he has returned to the law firm that bears his name, handling various civil disputes.

“Public service is good training for a position in the judiciary,” said Brindisi, an Albany Law School graduate. “I would remind people that I am first and foremost a lawyer. I’ve been practicing as a lawyer for almost two decades, other than my time in Congress … I’m used to listening to both sides, being respectful, bringing people together to solve problems.

Either candidate, Fogel, 43, from Manlius, or Brindisi, 42, from Utica, will become one of the youngest elected Supreme Court judges in local history. It is a big job that requires a campaign in six counties and the approval of the political parties in each of those counties.

The two candidates have remarkably similar campaign finances, according to the most recent available documents: Brindisi had raised about $ 166,000, while Fogel had raised about $ 154,000.

State Supreme Court justices serve 14-year terms as a trial court. This means that they can be assigned to any type of case. In practice, most are assigned to managing legal proceedings – from personal injury to corporate disputes. The work brings in over $ 210,000 a year.

Voters in Onondaga, Oneida, Oswego, Lewis, Jefferson and Herkimer counties will decide the race.

RELATED:

Danielle Fogel: Why I am running as a judge at the Supreme Court of the State

Anthony Brindisi: Why I am running as a judge on the State Supreme Court

Election 2021: who’s on the ballots in central New York City?

Election 2021: where you can vote early in central New York

Writer Douglass Dowty can be contacted at [email protected] or 315-470-6070.