In the race for Putnam County Executive, MaryEllen Odell has scored the endorsement of another political party. The Westchester Independence Party, which also represents Putnam, has announced its intention to back Odell as she seeks re-election in November. The Republican Party unanimously endorsed her in March and she has also interviewed for the Conservative Party endorsement.

“We endorse candidates based on merit not party affiliation and we believe that MaryEllen Odell has done an incredible job in her short time as county executive,” said Dhyalma Vazquez, vice chairwoman of the Westchester Independence Party. “She has worked hard to break the strongholds of past methods of governing by offering a new approach to government. MaryEllen realizes that fiscal responsibility means looking at ways to consolidate and reduce expenses while also finding new ways to generate revenue. She is a proponent of utilizing public-private partnerships to relieve the tax burden on the residents. MaryEllen gets it. She understands that things can no longer be done the way they always were.”

Odell is humbled by the overwhelming endorsement of the Independence Party.

“I thank the Independence Party for selecting me to represent it in this November’s general election,” said Odell. “Thank you for recognizing the how much my administration has been able to accomplish in fewer than 1,000 days. We started full force on Day One and have been moving full steam ahead ever since. With the momentum that we have going, I believe Putnam County will continue to take great strides for the future.”