NIAGARA FALLS — If there was anything Doug Mooradian can take away from his campaign for the New York State Assembly, it is that how important it was to have a race at all.
“Having two people on the ballot forces a conversation on who they’re voting for and why they’re voting for them,” Mooradian said, with one of his goals being to make sure voters have a choice.
The first-time political candidate lost in the race for the 145th State Assembly District seat, falling to incumbent Angelo Morinello by 10,000 votes. It was the first time Morinello had a challenger for his seat since he was elected in 2016.
The 145th District is made up of the City of Niagara Falls and the towns of Niagara, Wheatfield, Cambria, Lewiston, Porter, and Grand Island.
Mooradian knew that it was going to be a challenge running against a three-time incumbent, but the end result did not change the fact that he was glad he ran and was grateful for the opportunity to do it.
“While the goal was to win, we also had goals to bring to light the issues and challenges that our district faces, like inequities when it comes to resources like power, parks, and the casino,” Mooradian said.
As with all of the other competitive races taking place in Niagara County this year, the Republican candidates reliably won their elections. Mooradian felt that the way people voted with their feelings on national and state races impacted how they voted more locally, with Governor-elect Kathy Hochul not winning Niagara County and Rep. Brian Higgins, while re-elected, did not carry the Niagara County areas in his district.
Mooradian acknowledged that he should have started his campaign sooner, saying that any good campaign for an office should start at least a year out while he only had six months to work with, which was when this opportunity presented itself. He did learn about what to expect from voter turnout and the infrastructure needed to run a good campaign.
He also would have wanted to take the time to speak about his thoughts about crime in the region and why he thinks bail reform needs to be revisited.
He also would have stressed his stance as politically moderate and that he is part of the Independence Party, but ran on the Democratic line because there was no option for an Independence Party line.
Still, Mooradian was surprised that the race between him and Morinello was a clean race, with him calling his opponent on election night to congratulate him and wishing him well in representing the district.
“It was nice to get a good clean race while some others were not,” Mooradian said. “It says a lot about both of us.”
Mooradian did tout his community involvement and passion for the area when running, but had taken a step away from that recently. Running for an office made him realize how much he missed that and wants to make sure that stays.
“People should expect to see me at events, supporting the community and district as a whole,” Mooradian said.
When asked if he would consider running for another elected office in the future, he responded with, “Never say never.”