The Democratic Party in Mount Vernon has once again decided that your vote—and your intelligence—don’t matter. Led by Mary Graves, sister of former Mayor Clinton Young, the party has staged yet another hollow “Get Out the Vote” rally to support a slate of unopposed candidates: Caitlin Gleason, Cynthia Turnquest-Jones, Andre Wallace, and Danielle Browne for City Judge.
Let’s be clear: this is not democracy. This is damage control.
A Party That Rewards Failure
Graves and her allies now champions the same tired insiders and opportunists who helped drag this city into fiscal ruin, infrastructure collapse, and national embarrassment.
The Democratic Party didn’t even back these candidates during the primary—remember that? They’re only “the slate” because too many Democrats stayed home when competent, ethical leaders like Nick Mastrogiorgio, Bill Schwartz, Tanesia Walters, Benjamin Montgomery, and Judge Peter Davis were on the ballot.
That silence handed the keys to the same club of mediocrity that treats Mount Vernon residents like pawns in a rigged game.
The Patterson-Howard Legacy: A Masterclass in Failure
Under Mayor Shawyn Patterson-Howard, Mount Vernon has become a national case study in mismanagement:
Federal Civil Rights Violations:
Raw Sewage and Environmental Injustice:
Public Embarrassment:
Financial Freefall:
And yet, the same machine has the audacity to march out an unopposed slate—counting on you to be too distracted, too disillusioned, or too obedient to notice.
Do They Think You’re That Dumb?Let’s talk straight.They’re betting that you’ll continue being a slave and vote "row a all the way without thinking. They’re counting on you to forget the missed trash pickups, the flooded basements, the under-staffed police department, and the rising property taxes.
One voter summed it up perfectly:“Vote to make my taxes higher? You must really think I’m dumb.” Exactly.
Because that’s what this unopposed farce is built on—the assumption that you won’t fight back, that you’ll keep rewarding incompetence.
Here’s the Real Power Move- Don’t give them the satisfaction. Don’t feed the beast.
- A non-vote is not apathy—it’s a protest. It’s a reminder that they work for you, not the other way around.
- Every empty line on that ballot says, “Earn my vote.”
- Every blank space says, “You don’t get to coast anymore.”
- The truth is, they don’t need your vote to win—but they desperately need your silence to feel legitimate. So take that from them. Make them sweat for every scrap of credibility they still think they have.
The Bottom Line
Mount Vernon deserves better than unopposed arrogance.Better than sewage in our streets and rot in our politics.Better than party loyalty masquerading as civic duty.So no, you’re not dumb. You’re just done being played.Let them prove they deserve your vote—or let them choke on the consequences of taking it for granted.
The Voice of Mount Vernon
Where truth doesn’t need permission.
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