ICYMI: North Country Dairy Farmer Blake Gendebien, Democrat for NY-21, Hosts Town Hall in Plattsburgh

Lisbon, NY – Last night, dairy farmer and small business owner Blake Gendebien hosted the third town hall of his campaign to represent NY-21 in Plattsburgh.

Speaking with over 250 community members, Gendebien discussed his campaign’s focus on making life more affordable for the North Country, protecting and uplifting small businesses and farmers, combating divisive politics, and reaching new voters.

See more videos and photos from the event here

On the biggest issues for farmers, Gendebien said, “If you polled farmers in the North Country, labor would be number one. Number two would be this tariff issue. Tariffs are a disaster for agriculture. In the last 10 years, our region has lost 700 dairy farms. That’s not a great record for the representative for the North Country.”

On lowering the cost of living, Gendebien said, “Affordability, affordability, affordability. It’s what everybody is concerned about, and we are going to run into an inflationary period because of these tariffs that’s going to hurt. We need people that are going to stand up against that and make sure that life in the North Country is affordable again.”

On party politics, Gendebien highlighted his commitment to getting things done for the North Country, saying, “I’m here for what’s best for the North Country. I’m not here for what’s best for one man. We are a country of laws, not a country of men.” 

On reaching new voters, Gendebien said, “We are going to have an aggressive field operation. We’re going to work very, very hard to meet people where they are… We’ve got over 21 universities, community colleges, and schools of higher learning in this district. There’s a wonderful opportunity to get the support of our younger voters in NY-21. We need to go where they’re listening.”

This month, Gendebien will continue his town hall series with events in Potsdam, Rome, and Canajoharie to meet and listen to the needs of people across NY-21. 

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Born and raised on a farm in the North Country, Blake and his wife Carmen have raised their three sons on the Twin Mill Farm in Lisbon, growing the farm to 500 head of cattle. Blake and Carmen also started The Jules of Life Foundation, which provides resources and support to North Country families battling pediatric cancer. For the past 10 years, Blake has served as the Vice Chair of the Cooperative Board of Agri-Mark where he represented the interests of farmers from across the region. He is a former member of the Lisbon Central School Board, and was a longtime junior varsity basketball coach.