Former President Donald Trump declared victory in the race for the White House early Wednesday morning.
“The truth is that if you have been promised something for so long and haven’t gotten it, and your only other option is to try something else, you’re going to try something else,” explained Center for Law and Justice Operations Director Ta-Sean Murdock.
Murdock admits a Trump win was not what he was looking but noted that exit polling indicated minority voters leaning a different way than what was anticipated.
“You’re looking for hope and opportunity,” Murdock said. “I’m not saying that one side offers that or doesn’t offer that. What we’re saying is we have to do something different than what we’re doing currently.”
Leadership on the local level is also changing. Albany County voters elected a new district attorney in Lee Kindlon, ousting David Soares after 20 years at the helm.
“The men and women who work in that office now have been doing a really good job,” Kindlon told reporters after declaring victory Tuesday night. “They just lack leadership and some cohesion that I’m able to bring to the table for their benefit.”
“We’re really excited about that, in particular around things like criminal justice reform and diversion,” Murdock said.
Albany also announced a new interim police chief in Brendan Cox this week.
“We have to be accountable. We have to be transparent, and we have to change. It’s not just in policy but in practice,” Cox said during the announcement Monday at City Hall.
“We’d really like to have a discussion around what community policing could look like for the future of Albany,” Murdock said. “And how we can be proactive about addressing crimes in the city, and not so much reactive.”