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Joshua Mertzlufft

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This page was current at the end of the individual's last campaign covered by Ballotpedia. Please contact us with any updates.
Joshua Mertzlufft
Image of Joshua Mertzlufft

Republican Party, Conservative Party

Elections and appointments
Last election

November 3, 2020

Personal
Profession
Attorney
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Joshua Mertzlufft (Republican Party, Conservative Party) ran for election to the New York State Senate to represent District 60. He lost in the general election on November 3, 2020.

Mertzlufft completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2020. Click here to read the survey answers.

Elections

2020

See also: New York State Senate elections, 2020

General election

General election for New York State Senate District 60

Sean Ryan defeated Joshua Mertzlufft in the general election for New York State Senate District 60 on November 3, 2020.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of Sean Ryan
Sean Ryan (D / Working Families Party / Independence Party)
 
60.7
 
91,008
Image of Joshua Mertzlufft
Joshua Mertzlufft (R / Conservative Party) Candidate Connection
 
39.2
 
58,817
 Other/Write-in votes
 
0.1
 
124

There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source

Total votes: 149,949
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Democratic primary election

The Democratic primary election was canceled. Sean Ryan advanced from the Democratic primary for New York State Senate District 60.

Republican primary election

The Republican primary election was canceled. Joshua Mertzlufft advanced from the Republican primary for New York State Senate District 60.

Conservative Party primary election

The Conservative Party primary election was canceled. Joshua Mertzlufft advanced from the Conservative Party primary for New York State Senate District 60.

Independence Party primary election

The Independence Party primary election was canceled. Sean Ryan advanced from the Independence Party primary for New York State Senate District 60.

Serve America Movement Party primary election

The Serve America Movement Party primary election was canceled. Sean Ryan advanced from the Serve America Movement Party primary for New York State Senate District 60.

Working Families Party primary election

The Working Families Party primary election was canceled. Sean Ryan advanced from the Working Families Party primary for New York State Senate District 60.

Campaign themes

2020

Ballotpedia survey responses

See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection

Candidate Connection

Joshua Mertzlufft completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2020. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Mertzlufft's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.

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A lifelong Western New Yorker, Josh Mertzlufft is an engineer-turned-attorney with a passion for bringing people together to solve problems. Josh earned his bachelor's in Applied Physics from Houghton College and his law degree from the University at Buffalo School of Law. Josh and his wife, Shea, live in Hamburg, New York with their son, and young puppy. Josh believes in Western New York. He is a firm believer that our Western New York Values, including integrity, grace, and unity-all parts of being a good neighbor-are just what New York needs in a time of divided politics. He rejects the notion that "Western New York votes don't matter," is a firm proponent of conservative values, and is excited to work to create a better future for our community.
  • We need to make it easier to start and run a business to get Western New York's economy growing again.
  • We need to simplify and lower our overburdensome taxes in New York.
  • We need to restore checks and balances in Albany by sending a Republican Senate to Albany.
Western New York's economy is my number one priority in this race, as it would be in the State Senate. Thus, areas of public policy that I'd like to focus on are numerous, but include job creation, taxes, regulations applicable to businesses, infrastructure, energy, healthcare, education, and environment. I also am very passionate about making sure our democratic republic functions effectively, especially ensuring free and fair elections for all citizens eligible to vote and restoring checks and balances.
Given the geographic population distribution in New York, the State Senate is the only chamber where the State outside of New York City even has a chance to have a voice in government. This reason alone is enough to support the need for an upstate Republican majority in the State Senate.
It depends on the previous experience. If the previous experience is years of going along with whatever the majority says, no. I believe that going into Albany as a new state legislator has many advantages, including having a fresh perspective on how to make life better in Western New York.
New York's greatest challenge will be the the reversal of a decade of people moving out of the state (1.4 million +), which has, at a minimum, coincided with the state's run to the political left. The election of 2020 is critical to determining the path forward, because if the majority party stays in power and continues enacting anti-business and anti-family policies, New York State will continue in its decline. I want to reverse this decline.
Ideally, the executive and the legislature would work together, but have separate and coordinate power. In New York, the executive wields great influence over the legislature, and I would like to see the legislature reassert itself as a coordinate branch of government.
Insofar as it does not result in separating you from your community back home. Being able to work together for the benefit of the state is essential for legislators, and I believe it would help even when you disagree on a policy matter vehemently.
We must ensure that redistricting is not partisan.
Three committees include Energy & Telecommunications; Budget & Revenues; and Commerce, Economic Development, & Small Business.
A restaurant owner recently told me that he is having to close his business down and move out of state at the end of the year. I asked him why, and he told me that the taxes and regulations on businesses in New York are hard in normal times, but the additional restrictions during COVID have made it nearly impossible to stay afloat. One of the reasons I'm running is to hopefully put an end to new stories like this. We need to make New York a place where families, businesses, and communities can thrive.

Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.

See also

2020 Elections

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External links

Footnotes


Current members of the New York State Senate
Leadership
Majority Leader:Andrea Stewart-Cousins
Minority Leader:Robert Ortt
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John Liu (D)
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J. Rivera (D)
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Lea Webb (D)
District 53
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District 61
Sean Ryan (D)
District 62
District 63
Democratic Party (41)
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