KNOX — Despite the high number of open seats in Knox’s general election this year, there’s only one political newcomer in the race so far. 

The Knox Republican Party has endorsed Jamie L. Berenger for supervisor, while backing incumbents for every other open position. 

Berenger, who is listed as a bus driver on the Berne-Knox-Westerlo staff directory, could not immediately be reached for comment. 

Berenger will face incumbent Democrat Russell Pokorny, who is the Democratic Party’s only candidate this year, party chairman Paul Scilipoti confirmed.

Besides Berenger, the Republican party endorsed Dennis Cyr and June Springer for town board, Matthew Schanz for highway superintendent, Elizabeth Walk for tax collector, Traci Schanz for town clerk, and Bonnie Donati for justice. 

Cyr and Springer each first joined the town board in 2020 after running alongside then-Supervisor Vasilios Lefkaditis who, despite being a Democrat, had helped the Republican Party take control of the town as similar shifts were occurring in the other Hilltowns, which had also long been controlled by the local Democratic committees.

Pokorny, who previously had been the town assessor, was elected supervisor in 2021 after Lefkaditis declined to seek re-election, leaving Kregg Grippo as the Republican candidate that year. 

Grippo, who left questions about his finances unresolved during the campaign, was not able to ride the existing Republican momentum to victory, though he trailed Pokorny by only three points.

Schanz was first elected as town clerk in 2017, and has been re-elected every two years since on the Republican line. 

Donati also was first elected on the Republican line, in 2019 after several earlier unsuccessful attempts. This would be her second term. 

Walk was first elected to be tax collector in 2019 on the Republican line after first serving as assistant tax collector for three years. 

Schanz stepped up as highway superintendent in 2019 after, as deputy, he took over for Gary Salisbury when Salisbury retired on short notice. He was elected to fulfill the remainder of that term in 2020, and then ran successfully for his first full two-year term in 2021.