HILLTOWNS — While town Democrats and Republicans have already endorsed a slate of candidates, Berne residents enrolled in the Conservative or Independence parties will be able to vote on nominees or possibly write-in candidates during the Sept. 12 primaries. Members of the Albany County Conservative and Independence parties have selected a slate of candidates from both sides of the aisle.

In Knox, the Independence Party endorsed a slate of candidates already endorsed by the town’s Democratic Party, but two Republican-backed candidates are on the ballot, as well.

Albany County’s Conservative Party has nominated:

— Melanie Bunzey, and Brian Crawford,  both incumbents enrolled as Democrats, for town assessor. There are also two opportunities to ballot for assessor;

— Dennis Palow, enrolled as a Republican, and Frank Brady, enrolled as a Democrat, and both endorsed by the town Republican party, for town council. There are also two opportunities to ballot for councilmember;

— Sean Lyons, enrolled as a Republican, and incumbent Kevin Crosier, enrolled as a Democrat, for town supervisor;

— Randy Bashwinger, an incumbent enrolled as a Republican, for highway superintendent, There is also an opportunity to ballot for highway superintendent;

— Gerald O’Malley, an incumbent enrolled as a Democrat, for tax collector. There is also an opportunity to ballot for tax collector;

— William Keal, enrolled as a Republican, for town clerk. There is also an opportunity to ballot for town clerk; and

— Richard Otto, enrolled as a Republican, Mary Alice Molgard, Alan Zuk, and Albert Raymond, all enrolled as Democrats, though Molgard has been endorsed by the Republican party with Otto, for town justice.

Richard Stack, the chairman of Albany County’s Conservative Party, said that the candidates nominated were reviewed by a variety of panel members who come from all over the county. The panel interviewed 138 people in total this year.

“We’re open and transparent…” said Stack, of the party’s ideals. “Our party stands for family first, so we look for government to support the family, not the family to support the government.”

Stack noted that the party nominated both the Democrat and Republican nominees for town supervisor. Crosier, said Stack, had a long record of reducing property taxes, but Stack said Crosier’s views on consolidating services like the highway department with the county are concerning. Lyons, he said, has a plan to increase growth in the town that could be tamped down by heavy-handedness under Crosier. Stack said he would leave the choice to the voters in the open primary.

“And it makes these candidates go out and meet my Conservatives...” Stack added. “My job is to weed out the people that aren’t the Conservatives.”

He described “a real attitude” between Bashwinger and Crosier due to tension of proposed consolidation of the town’s highway department with the county’s department of public works. The two leaders have often locked horns, including a dispute over a four 10-hour day work-week for half the year, which Crosier sought to end. This eventually led to Crosier firing and then re-hiring two highway workers, which Stack described as “heavy-handed,” though he said Crosier’s fiscal record made him a viable candidate.

Albany County’s Independence Party has nominated:

— Bunzey and Crawford for town assessor. There are also two opportunities to ballot;

— James Cooke, an incumbent, and Joel Willsey, both enrolled as Democrats, for town council. There is also an opportunity to ballot;

— Crosier for town supervisor. There is also an opportunity to ballot;

— Bashwinger for highway superintendent. There is also an opportunity to ballot;

— O’Malley for tax collector. There is also an opportunity to ballot;

— Anita C. Clayton, an incumbent enrolled as a Democrat, for town clerk. There is also an opportunity to ballot; and

— Otto, Molgard, Zuk, and Raymond for town justice.

“What we try to do is, we try to find the candidates that most fit the ideals of the Independence Party,” said Paul Caputo, the chairman of the Albany County Independence Party.

According to Caputo, the party’s committee interviews candidates about their community and evaluate them.

“They’re not given softball questions,” he said.

Caputo described the party as a “middle-of-road” party with fiscally conservative and socially liberal values that include valuing political reform and community.

He said that Bashwinger is very active in his community — with his department and his town, even using social media as a means of communication.

Crosier, who the party has endorsed before, had a good track record as a supervisor, said Caputo.

“We felt that slate best represented the ideals and beliefs of the Independence Party,” he said, of the entire slate.

The Knox Independence slate

The Independence Party nominated a slate of Knox candidates who were also all endorsed by the town’s Democratic party last month, although two Republican-endorsed candidates are also on the ballot due to statutory reasons.

The candidates endorsed are:

— Brett Pulliam, a current planning board member who is not enrolled in any party, and incumbent Dan Hanley, a Democrat, for town council. There are also two opportunities to ballot;

— Amy Pokorny, a current town council member and Democrat, for supervisor. There is also an opportunity to ballot.

— Tara Murphy, an incumbent Democrat, for town clerk. Traci Schanz, a member of the Independence Party who has been endorsed by the Republican Party, was able to petition to be on the ballot without the party’s permission because she is a member.

— Jean Gagnon, an incumbent Democrat, for town justice. Timothy Francis, a Republican endorsed by his party, was also able to petition to be on the ballot without party permission because it is allowed for the position of a judge.

Rachel Bledi, a public official at the Albany County Board of Elections, said that both Schanz and Francis are allowed to petition on their own.

“There are two instances you can run on a line without getting the endorsement of a party,” said Bledi. “One is, if you’re a town judge, and one is if you’re actually enrolled in the party.”

According to Caputo, Pokorny had been endorsed by the party before when she had run for town board.

“We feel she really did a good job serving on the town board…” said Caputo. “We feel she would do a good job as supervisor.”

He said her opponent, current supervisor Vasilios Lefkaditis, had also gone before the committee for an endorsement. Lefkaditis, an enrolled Democrat, has the backing of the Republican party.