Brett Yagel For NY Assembly: Patch Candidate Profile 2022

ROCKLAND COUNTY, NY — In 2022's general election, residents of the Hudson Valley will be voting for state and local officials. In anticipation, Patch asked candidates in the contested races to answer questions about their campaigns and will be publishing candidate profiles as election day draws near.

Republican Brett L. Yagel is running to unseat Kenneth Zebrowski and represent the temporarily re-drawn District 96 in the New York State Assembly.

Now a Haverstraw resident, Yagel spent more than a decade serving on the Pomona village board, including as mayor from 2011-19. He became involved in local politics as one of the leaders to stop a high-density housing project at Patrick Farm that threatened a vital part of the county's water resources and would have destroyed Pomona’s character. A graduate of Polytechnic University, the 58-year-old works at Lockheed Martin Corporation as a publications engineer in the Trident submarine program.

Learn more about him on his campaign website.

Why are you seeking this office?

NYS is in crisis. One party rule in Albany is ruining the Quality of Life of everyday citizens and residents.

Crime is at an all time high, our infrastructure is crumbling, laws are being passed that will directly affect every property owner and our environment without any forethought. Public Officials are more concerned with Personal Service than Public Service should always be about Public Service, not Personal Service. Too often, public officials forget about the people they serve and their needs.

What are the major differences between you and the other candidates seeking this post?

I've worked quietly and effectively in the background to ensure Rockland residents and their quality of life were least affected. As Mayor, I lead the effort to ensure that 40% of the freshwater well fields in Rockland were not negatively impacted by egregious developers due to overdevelopment (e.g., Patrick Farm). As Mayor, I lead the effort to challenge egregious property owners and developers who would have brought high-density housing into environmentally sensitive areas. As Mayor, I participated in efforts to stop the desalination project that would have resulted in residents drinking water from the Hudson River.

If you are challenging an incumbent, in what way has the current officeholder failed the community?

He is out of touch with his constituency. He has become complacent. He has failed his constituency by remaining silent on the egregious Bail Reform initiative, by voting to enact legislation against our Law Enforcement community, by failing to respond quickly to issues his constituents (ie., ERCSD).

What other issues do you intend to address during your campaign?

Public service should always be about Public Service. It should never be about personal enrichment. I personally believe that there should be term limits.

What accomplishments in your past would you cite as evidence you can handle this job?

There has never been a shovel placed in the ground for the Desalination Project, the Haverstraw 'Walmart Project', the Patrick Farm, nor the 'college' in Pomona. I have effectively managed budgets as Mayor of the Village of Pomona. And like you, although having been a part-time Mayor, I have lived through struggles of paying taxes, mortgages, college, etc. I understand what the issues affecting my constituents are and I was not handed the 'elected job' as my opponent was.

What is the best advice anyone ever gave you?

Be true to yourself. And as the late Senator Thomas Morahan (for our area) once said, keep things simple.

Is there anything else you would like voters to know about yourself and your positions?

I work in the private sector for a major US Defense contractor. I know business and I, having been a part-time Mayor, know governmental operations. We need to streamline our governmental practices and governmental expenses.