Six Members of the Legislature Run for Reelection

For Immediate Release:
Six members of the Tompkins County Legislature announce they are running for reelection in 2021. Five of the six are completing their first term on the Legislature this year, with Dan Klein completing his second term. Terms run four years, and all 14 Legislature seats are up for election this year.

The New York State designating petition period begins February 23rd, with the primary election on June 22nd, and the general election on November 2nd.

Shawna Black (D- District 11, Town of Ithaca) says “I have enjoyed my time serving on the Legislature and have learned the intricacies of how County government operates. As we embark on uncertain times – I look forward to working hard to advocate for the residents in Tompkins County.” 

Elected as Vice Chair of the Tompkins County Legislature for three terms from 2019 to 2021, Black has provided leadership and bi-partisan collaboration amongst her colleagues. As Chair of the Health and Human Services Committee for the last three years, Black has focused efforts on homelessness solutions in Tompkins County, mental health awareness, and recently, Covid-19 support. 
Contact: https://www.facebook.com/ShawnaBlack4TompkinsCounty,
www.ShawnaBlack.com,
or ShawnaMBlack@gmail.com 


Amanda Champion (D- District 12, Town of Ithaca) has advocated for environmental protections, health and human services, and transparent government during her time on the Legislature. She has served on the Government Operations Committee (Chair), Planning, Energy, and Environmental Quality Committee, Budget, Capital, and Personnel Committee, Health and Human Services Committee, and the Complete Count Census Committee (Vice Chair). Additionally, Champion has served as liaison to a variety of agencies including Cornell Cooperative Extension, Tompkins County Public Library, and Water Resources Council.

Champion says, “The most important part of this work for me is listening to people and guiding them to the information or help they need. Particularly during this difficult period of the global pandemic, I’m grateful to have been in a position to help others, and hope my neighbors and fellow District 12 residents will see me fit to continue as their representative.” 

Contact: www.amandachampion.com or www.facebook.com/amandachampiondistrict12

Deborah Dawson (D- District 10, Villages of Lansing and Cayuga Heights and a portion of the Town of Ithaca) has served on committees including Budget, Capital, and Personnel, Government Operations, Health and Human Services, Housing and Economic Development, and Planning, Energy, and Environmental Quality (Chair), and as a director of the County’s Soil and Water Conservation District and of Tompkins Consolidated Area Transit. She is the Legislature’s liaison to the Cayuga Lake Watershed Intermunicipal Organization and to the Climate and Sustainable Energy Advisory Board. Her primary interests have been in the environment, climate change, and energy policy. 
Dawson says she is running for reelection “to focus on the two overwhelming challenges that now confront Tompkins County: the fiscal aftermath of the Covid-19 pandemic, and the efficient transition to sustainable energy we will need to mitigate the impacts of climate change.”
Contact: www.deborah-dawson.com,
www.facebook.com/DeborahDawsonForTCLeg,
or ithacadeborah@yahoo.com.

Henry Granison (D- District 3, City of Ithaca) is finishing his first term on the Tompkins County Legislature. Granison currently serves on the following committees: Public Safety, Government Operations (Vice Chair), Housing and Economic Development, and Workforce Diversity and Inclusion (Vice Chair). He is also the Legislature’s liaison to the Advisory Board on Indigent Representation, the Criminal Justice Advisory/Alternatives to Incarceration Board, the Emergency Response and Oversight Committee, the Public Information Advisory Board, the Recreation Partnership, the Strategic Tourism Planning Board, and the Alcohol Drug Council. He was also appointed to the Reimaging Public Safety Working Group.
Granison focuses on issues involving Public Safety, Diversity, and Economic Development.  
Contact: www.Henrygranison.com, 
henrygranison@gmail.com,
www.facebook.com/TompkinsCountyLegislatorHenryGranison,
or 607-342-3741.

Dan Klein (D- District 7, Towns of Caroline and Danby and a portion of the Town of Ithaca) is in his second term on the Tompkins County Legislature. Before that, he served for six years on the Danby Town Board. Klein is the Legislative Liaison to the County Office for the Aging Advisory Board, Lifelong, and the Environmental Management Council. Klein is Chair of the Tompkins Consolidated Area Transit (TCAT) Board of Directors and the President of the Greensprings Natural Cemetery Board of Trustees. His emphasis is on environmental and good government issues. 
Contact: electdanklein.org 

Anne Koreman (D-, District 5, Town of Ulysses and a portion of the Towns of Ithaca and Enfield) is running for a second term to continue her service to the people of Tompkins County. Koreman says, “We need to take the important lessons we have learned mitigating the effects of Covid-19 locally and apply those same types of efforts towards justice & equity, the environment, and labor issues.” 
During Koreman’s first term she served as Chair of the Workforce Diversity & Inclusion Committee, Vice Chair of Facilities and Infrastructure Committee, and in 2020 was a member of the Tompkins County Industrial Development Agency where she chaired a committee to research adding a local labor requirement to projects which receive tax abatements. Other committees she has worked on include Housing and Economic Development, Downtown Facilities, and Planning, Development, & Environmental Quality. She has also served as a liaison to the County Agriculture and Farmland Protection Board. 

Contact: ak@anne4tompkins.com,
www.anne4tompkins.com,
https://www.facebook.com/Anne4Tompkins,
or 607-592-2886