The Cornell Daily Sun (https://cornellsun.com/tag/rich-john/)
What was predicted to be a close contest between the incumbent and a challenger from the left is now a one-man race after Rich John ’81’s opponent withdrew.
Richard John ’81, in an interview on Wednesday, said that if he is elected to the four-year position, he will draw on his past experience representing constituents — for decades as a lawyer and as the district’s representative on the Legislature since 2015 — to serve Collegetown and downtown residents.
Four candidates running for local government positions presented their platforms at a candidate forum hosted by the Collegetown Neighborhood Council Tuesday. Elie Kirshner ’18 defended against questions about whether he is experienced enough to represent the Collegetown and Commons neighborhoods in the Tompkins County Legislature. Kirshner, the Democratically-endorsed candidate, is running against local attorney and independent candidate Rich John ’81. Although only 19 years old, Kirshner said he has many experiences to bring to his position, if elected. Last year, he interned at City Hall, where he said he organized the Commons reopening celebration and wrote press releases about city hall events.