ROCHESTER, N.Y. (WROC) — Monroe County Executive Adam Bello won a historic reelection bid Tuesday, becoming the first Democrat ever reelected to the position.
“Tonight we’re going to celebrate, but tomorrow we’ve gotta get back to work,” Bello said in his victory speech. “We’ve been at the front lines of tackling our public health challenges. We’ve been putting people back to work, training the next generation of workforce. We’ve been investing in our infrastructure. And we’re doing all of that while protecting our taxpayers.”
“We’re just getting started,” he said.
Bello, who was first elected to the position in 2019 and served throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, commanded nearly 61% of the vote with all districts reporting at 11:27 p.m. His challenger, Republican Mark Assini, had just over 39% at that time.
- Bello — 85,520 votes
- Assini — 55,131 votes
Bello is the first Democrat to be reelected as county executive in Monroe County history. In his speech Tuesday night, he celebrated the news that voters elected a majority of Democrats to the Monroe County Legislature, “for the first time in a long time.”
“When I think back to my days working as executive director of the party, we dreamed of a night like this,” He said. “Back then, every countywide office was held by the Republicans, and we were a far cry away from a majority in the legislature. With years and years of hard work and support we changed that, and it’s a new day in Monroe County.”
Bello also took a moment on stage to embrace Andrae Evans, a Democrat who won the race for Irondequoit town supervisor Tuesday. Bello himself formerly held the same position.
Click here for the latest results, and click here for the News 8 election live blog. Check back for updates on this developing story.
