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PEEKSKILL, N.Y. The leader of the Peekskill GOP said he would be more excited about Tuesday's primary if there were more at stake.
Instead, Peekskill Republican Chairperson Vinnie Vesce said the state's primary was being held after the race had already been unofficially decided but will still cost taxpayers millions of dollars to hold.
"It's one of the downsides of the primary system that's been created over the years," Vesce said. "Every town in the state is forced to hold a vote when there's nothing of consequence at stake. Mitt Romney will be the candidate and the state will be going through a great deal of expense for what is a pro forma exercise."
Romney, the former governor of Massachusetts, will appear on the ballot Tuesday along with former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, Texas Rep. Ron Paul and former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum, who recently dropped out of the race.
Vesce's lack of enthusiasm in the New York primary race is echoed by donations made by Peekskill residents. According to OpenSecrets.org, so far just three city residents have made donations to GOP presidential candidates and one of those was to Rick Perry, the former Texas governor who is no longer in the presidential race.
Vesce said the most important goal of the primaries was to select the candidate who is best prepared to beat Democratic President Barack Obama in the 2012 general election. Romney has the best chance to do so, he said.
"The last three-and-a-half years have been very destructive to this country," Vesce said of Obama's term in office. "Romney has shown he is more than capable of practicing policies that are pro-growth and can move the country forward."
A list of polling places for Tuesday's GOP primary can be found online.
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