A Message from NYSYR Chairman Christopher Dziedzic

I am very excited to see the return of the GOPYR newsletter. This was a labor of love for Brian Graybow for a couple of years. With his recent elevation to NYSYR Chief of Staff, I am grateful that Jonathan Judge has volunteered to step in with his experience and creative ideas as the new Editor-in-Chief.

When Jonathan asked me to pen a few words for this issue, I thought this would be an appropriate time to expand on some of the main goals the current Executive Board has for the NYSYR. Early in 2007, when I announced my candidacy for State Chair, I spoke of how, "The continued success of the NYSYR, and in fact the entire Republican party, is based upon victory in three ongoing battles. We must be able to contribute significantly to the battle of numbers, the battle of wallets, and the battle of ideas.”

But what does that actually mean? How does the NYSYR contribute significantly to Republican efforts in the "battle of numbers?" The first, and most obvious, way our organization contributes is by getting bodies out on the streets in targeted election efforts.

Looking at 2007 alone, we can be proud of our additions to the special election efforts in Senate District 7 in Nassau County, Assembly Districts 61 and 62 in Richmond County and, most recently, Assembly District 105 in Montgomery and Schenectady Counties. For the fall, we plan to build on these efforts with similar targeted campaign weekends throughout September and October. We know, in hotly contested local races, that the energy and enthusiasm of a block of Young Republican volunteers can infect a campaign down the home stretch.

The “battle of numbers”is not only about providing volunteers. It is also about ensuring we have strong, viable candidates for all levels of office on our party line. Young Republicans are now at the forefront. Whether as candidates for United States Congress, New York State Assembly, county or municipal office, Young Republicans are stepping forward. As is often said, we are not the future of the party, we are the present of the party. And our continuing contributions on multiple levels in the “battle of numbers” is evidence of that.

Christopher Dziedzic is the Chair of the NYSYR. When all of his political work is done, he falls to sleep dreaming of a rotation of Drabek, Deshaies, and Tewksbury pitching the Yanks to a couple of pennants in the late 1980s.