McCann’s Conservative Party Endorsement: A Dirty Deal

Will the Democratic Party disavow McCann? Don’t count on it—the party’s leaders orchestrated this betrayal.

Democrat Jeff McCann, Deputy County Executive and candidate for Greece Town Supervisor, just secured the endorsement of the New York State Conservative Party¹—a political organization that is anti-abortion, anti-union, anti-LGBTQ rights, anti-universal health care, anti-green energy, and rabidly pro-Trump.

At a time when Democrats across the country are fighting to protect democracy from Trumpism, the Bello-Morelle machine is cutting deals with Trump’s enablers. The very same party that works to block progress and uphold extremist values is now backing a “Democrat”—and party leaders are falling in line.

Let’s be clear: this isn’t bipartisanship. It’s capitulation. It’s a moral and political disgrace.

And no one should pretend this was an accident. This endorsement was bought.

A Backroom Deal, Plain and Simple

Back in October, Legislature President Yversha Roman—I suspect at the direction of County Executive Adam Bello—recommended reappointing Scott Nasca, an active Conservative Party official, to the Monroe County Water Authority (MCWA) Board of Directors. Nasca served as board chair, a role that came with a $10,500 annual stipend.

This recommendation was shocking when placed in context. For decades, Republicans manipulated a state law requiring representation from at least two political parties by stacking the MCWA with Conservatives instead of appointing Democrats. A 2009 grand jury even recommended overhauling the scandal-ridden board and capping service at two five-year terms.

Despite that history, the Morelle-Bello machine pushed to reappoint Nasca for a third term, helping keep Republicans and Conservatives in control of the board. The seven-member body now includes three Conservative Party members and one Republican—four officials from parties that together represent just 27% of Monroe County’s registered voters.

Roman claimed it was about “continuity” and “bipartisanship.” But from the beginning, I said the quiet part out loud: this was a political transaction to help McCann secure the Conservative Party endorsement. Nasca controls that endorsement. Reappointing him guaranteed McCann the backing he wanted.

Only three other Democrats joined me in voting no.²

And now? McCann has the Conservative line.

The Party of Nothing

This should be disqualifying. Instead, it’s being rewarded.

And the Monroe County Democratic Committee will do nothing to stop it—because this is who they are now. The Morelle-Bello machine that controls the party doesn’t stand for anything. They’re not building a bench of principled leaders. They campaign on Democratic values and abandon them when it’s politically inconvenient.

Let’s not pretend Monroe County Democratic leaders don’t know exactly what they’re doing. They’ve been ruthless in enforcing loyalty—so long as that loyalty serves them.

When Sabrina LaMar joined Republicans to become Legislature President, the party ran her out of office with negative mailers attacking her for aligning with the GOP.³ But now that McCann has openly cut a deal with Trump’s party, those same people are silent.

This isn’t about values. It’s about control.

They weaponize party loyalty to keep women and progressives in line—while the men at the top cut deals with whoever they want, even the far right.

To them, being a good Democrat isn’t about ideology. It’s about obedience.

And here’s the proof: I guarantee McCann’s donor list will be filled with prominent Democrats and Monroe County Democratic Committee members. Now that he’s secured the Conservative Party endorsement, every single one of them should be ashamed—and demand a refund.

I bet few, if any, will.

McCann’s Opportunism on Full Display

McCann’s political career is a masterclass in self-preservation. He began as a Democrat, working for State Senator Ralph Quattrociocchi and Assemblyman David Gantt. Then he switched parties—like several other Greece politicians, including Quattrociocchi, Joe Robach, and John Auberger—and served ten years in the Monroe County Legislature on the Republican and Conservative lines.

He worked under Greece Supervisor John Auberger (a tenure marred by scandal) and County Executive Maggie Brooks (also marred by scandal), before flipping back to Democrat to work under Adam Bello.

McCann has wanted the Greece Supervisor job for years. He first explored a run in 2012—as a Republican.

Now, as a Democrat again, he has the apparent backing of outgoing Republican Supervisor Bill Reilich, whose administration has been marked by misuse of resources, and allegations of corruption—including using a town employee for work on his Hot Rod Ranch, retaliation against whistleblowers and refusing to investigate GPS trackers placed on critics’ cars.

If McCann were serious about reform, Reilich wouldn’t be backing him.

In the Legislature, McCann has served as Bello’s enforcer—belittling, berating, and sidelining legislators who dare ask too many questions. He downplayed missing American Rescue Plan funds and ignored my report exposing self-dealing, even attempting to award another contract to the same problem vendors.⁴

His sleazy governance style should be purged from Monroe County—not elevated.

The Political Calculation

The Conservative Party should be toxic for any Democrat. Yet Monroe County Democrats just helped them stay relevant.

McCann is clinging to an outdated playbook from the days when suburban Democrats couldn’t win without multiple ballot lines. That’s probably why he switched parties in the first place. He believes cutting deals with Conservatives is still how you win.⁵

And in Greece—where voters narrowly backed Trump in 2024—appearing on the Conservative line sends a clear message: he wants Republican votes.

But here’s the truth: Democrats don’t need to make deals with Trump’s allies to win in suburban Monroe County anymore. No one’s even seriously tried in Greece in recent years—even though Democrats now outnumber Republicans there. With the Republican Party fractured and weakened, the Morelle-Bello machine could easily back a strong, values-driven Democrat and win.

If McCann needs the Conservative Party’s help, it’s because he’s a flawed candidate—untrustworthy to both sides.

This Isn’t Strategy. It’s Surrender.

Some will try to spin this as “working across the aisle”—as if this is a noble gesture in polarized times. That’s absurd. We can cooperate with Republicans without running on their ballot line.

There’s a difference between compromise and co-option. This is the latter.

McCann and the people backing him believe the ends justify the means. Winning is all that matters—along with the jobs, contracts, and political payoffs that come with it.

Rep. Joe Morelle, who poses as a Trump-fighter in D.C.⁶, stood next to McCann at his campaign launch. Adam Bello, who attacks others for working with Republicans, quietly cuts deals with them behind closed doors.

They’ll say it’s smart politics.

It’s not.
It’s corruption.
And it’s cowardice.

Where’s the Party?

And Chairman Stephen DeVay? He should disavow McCann immediately. Instead, he’ll likely attack me for speaking the truth.

Because in this party, disloyalty isn’t selling out to Trump’s Conservative Party.

Disloyalty is calling it out.

Democrats in Greece don’t have a real Democrat on the ballot this year. They have a Conservative-backed chameleon, whose only consistent trait is seeking power.

I don’t know what to tell them this November.

They’re the losers in this deal.

And they’re getting played.

1. Petitions were filed today at the Monroe County Board of Elections by the Conservative Party for McCann to have the line in November. The online update shows a certifcate of acceptance was filed, a form like this one that shows McCann accepted the endorsement. He has a few days to decline, if he chooses.

2. County Executive Adam Bello asked CSEA to pressure Democratic lawmakers to vote yes. CSEA, which represents some MCWA employees, provided cover for Democrats who backed the appointment, allowing them to claim they were simply following the union’s wishes. While I understand that CSEA’s priority is advocating for its members—especially given its broader relationship with Bello as a major county bargaining unit—I strongly disagree with their position on this. The idea that a Democratic replacement for Nasca wouldn’t be union-friendly is logically unsound. In the end, CSEA was doing Bello a solid—and it worked.

3.

4. Since he announced his run, I’ve been thinking a lot about last summer’s major ARPA allocation, negotiated by McCann. He directed millions in American Rescue Plan funds to fund youth and senior centers in the suburbs—while giving nothing to the City of Rochester. When I raised this issue, McCann played the attack dog in the chamber. Ironically, Greece was a top beneficiary, receiving over $1 million for new community center programs. So was Wilmorite, which landed a veterans center at Greece Ridge Mall. It wouldn’t surprise me if the company—or members of the Wilmot family—show up on McCann’s donor list. When all this went down, legislators had no idea McCann was running for Greece supervisor.

(Bello and McCann are perfectly content to ignore the Democratic majority and work around us when it suits them—because when the 15 votes become too inconvenient, they can just buy off the GOP.)

5. The Monroe County Democrats and Conservatives played footsie throughout the 1980s and 1990s. Back then, former Conservative Party Chair Tom Cook was a kingmaker, often using his power to punish Republicans who crossed him and reward Democrats he found more agreeable.

In 1987, former Democratic County Executive Tom Frey won in part because Cook ran a third-party candidate on the C line, siphoning votes from the Republican. But by 1991, Cook flipped and backed Republican Bob King, who went on to defeat Frey.

The absurdity of this arrangement was on full display in 1988 when former Democratic Party Chair Fran Weisberg complained that Joe Morelle lost an election to a Republican who secured the Conservative Party endorsement—arguing that because the Republican wasn’t actually conservative, she didn’t deserve the line.

But we don’t live in those times anymore. Democratic enrollment has grown considerably. In addition, the parties are more polarized than ever, and in the era of Trump, a Democrat accepting the Conservative Party line isn’t just political maneuvering—it’s an abomination.

6. Morelle voted for the Laken Riley Act, and has said almost nothing about the illegal immigration crackdown undertaken by Trump.