By RICK MILLER
Olean Star
OLEAN — Mike Sapraicone sat in a booth at Green Acres last Friday with three Republican officials before heading off to his 11th county fair in nine days as he travels across New York state trying to unseat U.S. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand.
Sapraicone, a retired New York City police detective and businessman involved in security services, is the Republican and Conservative candidate running against Gillibrand. He has the endorsement of former President Donald Trump and has in turn endorsed him.
As Sapraicone sat with Cattaraugus County republican Chairman Mark Heberling and county legislators Rick Smith and Steve Teachman, both of Olean, he spoke of growing up in Queens, where he became a policeman. He now lives on Long Island.
“I’ve been to 10 fairs in eight days,” Sapraicone says as a reporter pulls up a chair and sits down for a scheduled interview with the GOP Senate candidate. “I’ve had enough fried dough and lemonade…”
Sapraicone thinks Gillibrand doesn’t travel around the state enough and isn’t that well known. In a presidential election year with Trump as the GOP candidate, Sapraicone feels the former president can carry New York and garner more votes for him and other down ballot Republicans.
“Everything is about timing,” Sapraicone said.”It’s about hard work. Issues are important, burn if you relate to people it’s good. (Lee) Zeldin set a good foundation” with his campaign against Gov. Kathy Hochul.
Sapraicone knows he has to do well in the New York boroughs. “I want to win Queens,” he said of his home county. It’s important to notch wins in Upstate counties where Trump will do well if history is any indication, he said.
Sapraicone attended the Republican National Convention where he met with GOP leaders from across New York and felt the enthusiasm for the Trump-JD Vance ticket. Days later, President Joe Biden dropped out of the presidential race and endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris.
“She was one of the top liberal senators,” Sapraicone said.
As Biden’s vice president, he also tied her to inflation that New Yorkers see every time they go to the grocery store.
“To start with, we have to be fiscally responsible,” Sapraicone said without spelling out how he would reduce the federal deficit. He asked why New York for example wasn’t giving incentives to industry and helping farmers. The state needs to stem its outmigration and give kids a reason for staying here. For that, we need “better education and better opportunities.”
Sapraicone said while the Biden administration has ignored illegal immigration at the Southern border, illegal crossings along the Canadian border are up 250%.
Meanwhile, New York City and other sanctuary cities in New York are paying increased costs to shelter immigrants where there are homeless people and veterans who can’t find jobs, he said.
Sapraicone said the bipartisan agreement Congress had come to on immigration, which Trump torpedoed, didn’t go far enough, which he said would be “zero tolerance.”
On Israel’s war with Hamas over the Oct. 7 massacres that killed more than 1,300 Israelis, Sapraicone said, “You have to eliminate Hamas. “It is imperative to do what we can to get out the hostages, including the American hostages,” he said. “We can’t ask Israel to do it our way.” Sapraicone expressed no objection to Israel using American funds and arms to do it their way.
Sapraicone is predicting that Republicans will retain a narrow margin in the House and says,” I think we’ll take the Senate.
Sapraicone counts former Sen. Al D’Amato among his friends, and has been endorsed by him. “I’ve been working hard the past five months. I’m ready to make the first big upset since D’Amato and (former Gov. George) Pataki. It’s all in getting your name out there.”
Sapraicone said he wouldn’t just be a Republican senator. “I’m going to be a senator for all.”
Most politicians have never been a businessman and “don’t know what it’s like to make a payroll or make out a budget.”
He also favors term limits for Congress — two six-year terms for senators and six two-year terms for congressmen.
Sapraicone is highly critical of New York’s bail and parole reform. “We need to bring reality back to bail reform,” he said. In the last seven years, the Parole Board has released 42 cop killers “while the policemens’ families serve a life sentence.” There is a petition on Sapraicone’s website MikeSapraiconeForSenate.com, to tighten bail and parole restrictions.
Sapraicone spoke briefly about the recent absconding by convicted Salamanca killer Edward Kindt from parole in Dutchess County. He was arrested six days later at his boyhood home in Salamanca by Cattaraugus County Sheriff’s deputies and detectives. He said it showed “We lack common sense” in parole of dangerous individuals.
Sapraicone said that as senator, he would not push for a national ban on abortion. “It is a state issue.”
Another state issue Sapraicone disagrees with is New York’s ban on fracking oil and gas. Pennsylvania has done well with fracking, he said. “Why aren’t we allowed to frack in New York? We need to stop the restrictions.”
On another issue — Trump’s declaration that he would pardon most convicted in the Jan. 6 insurrection where protestors beat Capital policemen and forced their way into Congress to stop the certification of the presidential election — Sapraicone parted ways with the former president.
“I’m not going to agree with everything President Trump does,” he said. “Cops, he said, “have a special place in my heart. If they (protestors) are convicted, I don’t see any pardons.” The former president, he added, “appreciates law enforcement.”
Sapraicone questioned the hyper-partisanship that our politics has become. “There are a lot of great people on both sides of the aisle. I want to hear from both sides.”
