Westchester County Board of Legislators says legislator presented 'unauthorized proclamation;' legislator responds
A Westchester County legislator is facing heat from his own board over proclamations he previously made to the chairs of the now suspended, New York State Young Republicans.
More Stories
A Westchester County legislator is facing heat from his own board over proclamations he previously made to the chairs of the now suspended New York State Young Republicans.
"It has been brought to our attention that Legislator James Nolan presented Board proclamations to former New York State Young Republicans’ Chairs Peter Giunta and Bobby Walker without knowledge or consent of the Board or Board leadership, including our Chair," said an official statement in part from the Westchester County Board of Legislators.
The New York State Young Republicans was disbanded last week after a group chat was made public that included a series of racist and antisemitic messages. It has drawn outrage from both sides of the aisle.
Chairman Vedat Gashi says these proclamations by Legislator Nolan were made before all of this.
However, he says they were done without knowledge or consent of the board.
“That was surprising to me as the board chair because proclamations are only issued through the chair, they come through the entire body. They are honors that we bestow on members of the community who we believe are worthy of them. In this instance, that didn't happen," Gashi tells News 12.
Legislator Nolan says this is "purely political."
“It’s nothing but political. We’re two weeks away from Election Day. Some of my colleagues don’t have anything to say they accomplished and to bring this up now, after I gave the proclamation two years ago, it’s comical," says Nolan.
Nolan says these proclamations were given out in 2023.
He says they were recognizing the group’s voter engagement.
Nolan says he has apologized for the oversight.
“When I joined the board, there was no rules given to me about not adding or adding the chairman’s signature so I didn’t add it," Nolan tells News 12.
Nolan says he condemns the recent actions of the New York State Young Republicans.
In a Facebook post shortly after those developments came to light, he called the behavior deeply disturbing and inconsistent with his personal values.
A statement from the Westchester County Board of Legislators says board leadership has directed staff to conduct a comprehensive investigation into this matter.
