Two minor parties are shaking up this year's Tonawanda Town Board races with their recent endorsements - but the political maneuvering has only just begun.
The Conservative and Independence parties have boosted the election chances of two Democratic Town Board candidates in a town long dominated by Republican politicians.

In separate decisions, both minor parties endorsed two of the three Democratic candidates for Town Board, passing over Republican Councilman David H. Rider.

But Ralph C. Lorigo, Erie County Conservative chairman, says his party's endorsements in the town aren't final, and the candidates may end up fighting for Conservative backing in a September primary.

"Tonawanda is unfortunately still up in the air," Lorigo said.

With town Republicans almost guaranteed election in past town races, the combined Democratic, Conservative and Independence endorsements are making the 2001 races interesting.

The Conservative and Independence parties last week endorsed Democratic Councilman Daniel J. Crangle, Conservative challenger Charles E. Burkhardt and Republican Councilman Raymond E. Sinclair.

"I think they see the kind of job I'm doing," Crangle said. "I'm asking questions. I'm asking questions of department heads every day."

The two minor parties also endorsed Republican Highway Superintendent John G. Hedges for re-election.

The parties did not endorse Rider, Republican challenger Joseph M. Shiah and Democratic challenger Frank J. Longo for the three Town Board seats up for grabs.

Frank R. Parlato Jr., the chairman of the town Independence Party, noted that Crangle won his seat in last year's election by 145 votes, thanks to 1,000 votes on his Independence line.

"We think we're going to be the weight on the side of the fortunate this year, as we were with Crangle last year," Parlato said.

Tonawanda Independence Party members screened the candidates before voting as a committee, and the endorsements were a "tremendously difficult" decision this year, Parlato said.

Rider said the endorsements by the minor parties were dictated by top party officials, who overruled local committee members.

"It's coming from the top party bosses. It wasn't a fair and open process," he said.

The Conservatives don't have an official committee in the Town of Tonawanda, so a screening committee of local Conservatives made their endorsement recommendations to the executive board of the county committee.

Lorigo must give his final approval to the endorsements, and he said he's open to allowing Rider and the other candidates battle it out in a Conservative primary. He said he'll make that decision in about a week.

With Burkhardt, a Conservative, receiving the Democratic endorsement last month, and the Democrat Crangle tentatively getting the Conservative nod, some observers conclude a deal was struck.

Lorigo said the parties weren't trading endorsements, but as another Conservative Party official put it: "It's a logical conclusion."