KNOX — For the second consecutive race, Democratic Supervisor Michael Hammond is being opposed by a resident saying he has been in the post too long.

Vasilios Lefkaditis, a Democrat who serves on the Berne-Knox-Westerlo School Board, is mounting a challenge with a pro-business mantra for the town's top post on four lines. At the Democratic caucus on Aug. 3, Hammond got the endorsement with two-and-a-half times as many votes as Lefkaditis.

"I was very appreciative of the people that took the time to show their support with me," Hammond said of the results. Lefkaditis also said he was content to see a substantial block of support.

At 72, Hammond said he decided to run again because he enjoys the work as chief financial officer and cited his 42 years of experience. In that time, Hammond couldn't recall another challenge at a caucus.

"I had people tell me," Hammond said of Lefkaditis’s plans. When asked about his confidence that day, he said, "There was some level of apprehension."

Two years ago, Pamela Fenoff, who spoke out during board meetings and worked as the planning board secretary, ran against Hammond on Independence, Republican, and Conservative lines, losing by 78 votes, or 8 percent in the general election. She had beaten him in the Independence Party primary. She has since moved out of state because of her husband’s job.

Lefkaditis, now in his mid forties, is traveling a similar path, saying he has Conservative endorsement and is pursuing Hammond's Independence Party line as a write-in candidate on Primary Day, Sept. 10.

Enrollment in Knox breaks down this way: 39 percent of registered voters are Democrats, 22 percent are Republicans, 27 percent are not affiliated with a party, and the rest are enrolled in small parties.

After the election loss, Fenoff started a printed and electronic newsletter, called Rural Roots, which featured large advertisements by Hitmans Towing, a local business cited for operating in a residential area.

The business became a rallying point for dozens of residents who said the town was a shadow of its former self and, with no post office or businesses in the hamlet, criticized the town for pressing charges against the towing business on Route 146.

While the zoning violation was prolonged in court, the town board responded to the outcry by amending the zoning law to allow commercial uses in the hamlet, postponing a recommended second district around Hitmans Towing for the completion of an update to the town’s comprehensive plan.

“It showed their true colors,” said Lefkaditis, saying the young owner of the towing business was unecessarily “dragged through the mud.”

Hammond said the hamlet business district, not the one for Route 146, was justified by the current comprehensive plan and deferred to the ongoing process of gathering public input for an update to the 20-year-old guidance document.

“It’s evident we handled it. They’re still there,” he said of Hitmans Towing.

Fenoff lives in North Dakota but continues to send a newsletter through email and online. On the morning of the caucus, she sent out a message to several dozen email addresses, asking people to attend in support of Lefkaditis, who she came to know during her campaign.

Democratic Committee Chairman Nicholas Viscio’s count was 53 hands for Hammond and 24 for Lefkaditis.

Declaring it a success, Viscio said the Knox caucus was one of the largest he could recall in the rural town, though it was "a very cordial and very pleasant caucus by any means.” (See related letter to the editor.)

A handful of people at the caucus complained they only heard of the caucus shortly before it was to happen. Nicholas Viscio, once a supervisor hopeful who is now running for a seat in the county legislature, said the meeting was advertised with postings in a dozen public places around the town.

Having tried notices in a newspaper with mailed advertisments, Viscio pointed to the large turnout this year, when the committee, with its limited funds, used word of mouth and posted notices around town. As a political event, he said, it doesn’t belong on the town’s website.

“It takes money to put notices in the paper,” he said, adding, “Nothing replaces personal contact.”

Matthew Clyne, the Democratic Commissioner at the Albany County Board of Elections, who attended the caucus, said proper notice was given, according to State Election Law.

“They put up the proper notices, but they put them in obscure places,” Lefkaditis said. He added, “It’s the furthest thing from a democratic process.”

Lefkaditis declined to talk about the details of his plans if he wins the race, saying he would be revealing them closer to the election. Hammond, too, was reluctant to talk about specific issues, saying he hadn’t yet prepared a platform.

The supervisor gets an annual part-time salary of $16,672.

If he wins, Lefkaditis would be adding to his duties as a school board member, treasurer of the local Little League, a founder and manager of a real estate equity fund, and father of five children. He also attended recent meetings where small groups of residents discussed the comprehensive plan.

Lefkaditis owns a piece of property in the hamlet that once had a general store and the town’s small post office. He said the space, now under renovation, will be available to local businesses and, at least at first, rent-free.

Hammond owns Mountain Woodshop, a carpentry business on his property. Originally from the Champlain Valley, Hammond came to Knox in 1963, and is retired from working as a high-school technology teacher.