Candidates for Monroe County executive squared off Wednesday evening, a week ahead of the election between incumbent Republican Cheryl Dinolfo and Democratic challenger Adam Bello.

Dinolfo has served as county executive since 2016, and is running for her second term. Bello currently serves as Monroe County clerk, and hopes to unseat her next week.

A variety of issues were discussed, including jobs and workforce development, two topics where their philosophies differed, with Dinolfo touting a track record of creating jobs and programs in the county.

"People are making money; businesses are coming to Monroe County. Think about the jobs that we have been able to save here in Monroe County. American Packaging was going to leave Monroe County but they stayed instead, it's all about jobs first in Monroe County," Dinolfo said.

Meanwhile Bello remained critical. He says the county isn’t doing enough to help fill the thousands of jobs businesses have available, and says things need to be scaled up to properly address the issue.

"Government doesn't create jobs. We create the environment where job creators and businesses can thrive, that we can attract new people and new families into our region, and be successful. We can't just keep relying on political slogans and numbers that don't match reality," Bello said.

Property taxes, state mandates, homeownership, the opioid crisis, and gun control were also all discussed.

Campaign finance was also discussed, with both candidates accusing the other of illegal behavior.

Bello defended his use of both a county clerk and county executive election fund, by saying it’s legal and common practice across the country.

While Dinolfo says she hasn’t exceeded her contribution limit by $19,000 as Bello suggests, but instead cites a clerical error that will be fixed with her next filing.

Spectrum News spoke with both candidates after the debate to discuss how they thought the evening went.

“Together we have really accomplished a lot in the last three and a half years, and I’m looking forward to continuing to work for this community to make sure we grow more jobs, strengthen our families and better economic opportunities,” Dinolfo said.

Meanwhile, Bello says he thinks voters are ready for something different.

“I think I laid out a path forward for Monroe County, where we can move past political slogans, and projects and things that sound great but don’t really move the needle or move this community forward," Bello said.

Election Day is Tuesday, November 5.