Robert Moore
By Marianne Christy
Following a four-year respite from the local political scene, former Town of Webb Supervisor Robert Moore has announced he will be hitting the campaign trail in pursuit of the supervisor position he once held.
Moore acknowledges that his announcement for the November 2015 election may seem early, but the timing feels appropriate for resuming his political career, he said.
After all, it was March 17, 2011, when he notified his constituents that he was retiring from his previous tenure as supervisor.
“More details regarding a platform will follow, but for now I just want it to be known that I am on the campaign trail. I will be letting people know what I’m about and what I intend to do,” Moore said.
Aside from taking six months to decompress following his 10 years as supervisor—a term that spanned from January 2002 to December 2011—Moore said he’s been busying himself with new experiences and gaining new skills.
A lover of the outdoors, he worked at the Garden Center at Lowes in Utica—an experience he said was incredibly educational—and for the past two years worked seasonally with Hollister Geomatics, a local surveying company.
He also returned to his roots with the Town of Webb Highway Department, where he had served as superintendent from 1998 to 2001. He spent the last two winters plowing roads as a seasonal employee.
Moore said his four-year hiatus from public service allowed him to gain a different perspective of the local political scene.
Now the time seems right for getting back in the game, he said.
“A question that comes up quite often is, ‘Do you miss being in office?’ And the answer—I can say with assurance, 99 percent of the time is: ‘Yes I do,’” he said.
Another question that may be on voters’ minds is, in light of the announcement, will his wife Mary Brophy-Moore, a Webb councilwoman whose term expires at the end of this year, seek reelection?
Brophy-Moore said she would love to run again but is currently undecided.
She described herself and Robert as independent thinkers, who would have no difficulty functioning independently on the town board. But she also would understand a perception to the contrary.
Therefore she said she will try to gauge the public’s receptiveness before deciding on reelection.
“If people do not think it is a good idea, I certainly would not pursue it. It depends on what kind of a feel I get from people. I really enjoy being on the board, but I don’t want it to be a contentious situation,” she said.
