​Bethlehem Democratic Committee Endorsements

The BDC is proud of that our candidates all won their elections
in 2025 with some of the highest margins in recent history.

​The BDC are prepared to continue dedicating the time, energy, and funds
needed to support progressive Democrats – but we need your help, too!

MAKE A CONTRIBUTION TO THE BDC

From left to right: Marc Dorsey, Kim Whitsitt, Andy Kirby, David VanLuven, Maureen Cunningham, and David DeCancio

Town Supervisor
​REELECT DAVID VANLUVEN

Since joining the Town Board in 2016 and becoming Supervisor in 2018, David has shown that experience and leadership matter. As Town Supervisor, David has worked to better guide residential development, protect farms and forests, showcase the great work of town employees, advance renewable energy programs, and build bridges across political divides. His record is impressive, including creating a new 147-acre nature park, building a new Dive Pool, protecting the 307-acre Historic Heath Farm, enabling the restoration and construction of 40,000 feet of sidewalks, launching the Bethlehem Safe Streets traffic safety campaign, equipping our outstanding police officers with body cameras, transitioning the town fleet to electric vehicles, completing an award-winning Comprehensive Plan Update, and much, much more.

David and his wife Isabelle Bleecker have three daughters Catie, Juliette, and Emma who all went through the Bethlehem Central school system.

David has a B.A. from Middlebury College with a double major in Religion and Arctic/Alpine Ecology (for which he did his thesis research 130 miles north of the Arctic Circle), and a joint M.S. from Tufts University in Urban/Environmental Policy and Biology.

Town Board Member
REELECT MAUREEN CUNNINGHAM

"I am proud to be one of the hundreds of women who ran for office for the first time in 2017 in an effort to make positive change and ensure local government includes more women leaders. I continue to push for progressive change at the local level, through my tenure on the Bethlehem Town Board since 2018, working on issues ranging from PFAS in drinking water to electric vehicle infrastructure. I am a strategic leader with over 20 years of experience working on environmental policy and management, including on watershed protection, water equity, environmental justice, and drinking water policy. I have been involved with multiple initiatives, committees, and projects in the Town of Bethlehem since I first moved here in 2008, including currently serving as Town Board-Police Liaison, running a Police-Community Advisory Group, serving on a Source Water Protection working group, and launching a community group around equity and justice called We Are Bethlehem. I have raised my two multiracial sons here, and my husband and I are happy to call Bethlehem home.

I am running again because I feel there is more work to be done. I also feel that what's going on at the federal level will require stronger and vocal leaders at the local level, and I want to add my voice and support to critical issues around women's reproductive rights, racial justice, immigrant justice, LGBTQ and transgender rights, and others. With several years already on the Board, I am well-acquainted with how to achieve change, and would like to make further advances on assuring a just transition off of fossil fuels, protecting our water, and other critical issues."

- Maureen

Town Board Member
​REELECT DAVID DECANCIO

David R. DeCancio was elected to the Bethlehem Town Board and took office in January 2022. He is the proud son of Cuban refugees and the first Latino elected to the Bethlehem Town Board.

David’s commitment to community and public service is rooted in his desire to honor the sacrifices his parents made for him and his brother. His mother instilled in him the importance of giving back, repaying the country that gave their family hope and opportunity. Throughout his two decades of community involvement, David has taken great pride in being accessible and available to neighbors, community groups, and local businesses. As a member of the Town Board, he continues to work alongside all residents to make Bethlehem a place we can all be proud to call home.

This sense of duty has driven his volunteerism, which was recognized by the Bethlehem Chamber of Commerce with its 2018 Community Spirit Award. David currently serves on the Bethlehem YMCA Advisory Council, the Bethlehem Youth Court, and the St. Thomas Church Pastoral Care Ministry.

David is an accomplished public policy and communications strategist who currently serves as a Senior Advisor to New York State Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie. He has held various senior-level positions for the NYS Assembly and in the Office of the Governor.

David and his wife raised their two daughters in Bethlehem and reside in Selkirk. He holds a B.A. in Political Science from SUNY Plattsburgh

Town Highway Superintendent
REELECT MARC DORSEY

Seeking his fourth term as Highway Superintendent for the Town of Bethlehem, Marc
Dorsey is a veteran who has proudly served in both the Army and the Air Force National
Guard. Marc has also been a member of the Operating Engineers for over 30 years.
No stranger to hard work, Marc is a Bethlehem lifelong resident and lives in South
Bethlehem with his wife Michelle and their two children, Marshall and Madelynn.

Marc started his first term as our Highway Superintendent in January 2020. By mid-
March, COVID changed our way of life. With only a skeleton crew for most of the year,
Marc’s leadership brought renewed strength and determination to the Department.
Since taking the position of Highway Superintendent in 2020 not only did they work
through the pandemic but also through some of the worst storms in our town’s history.

Under Marc’s leadership the Highway department has paved more roads, repaired and
installed more sidewalks than previous years combined. All the town’s snowplows are
now equipped with salters for greater efficiency and cost savings and leaf pick up has
been streamlined to be more efficient and timelier. The Highway department has also
taken on special projects such as the Pickel Ball Courts and paving the Ambulance
building parking lot. Marc’s understanding of how to apply for and access state grants
saved your hard-earned tax dollars.

If elected for a fourth term, Marc Dorsey will continue to work for Bethlehem, driving
results and bringing quality services to our town.

Town Clerk
​REELECT KIM WHITSITT

Kim Whitsitt was first elected Town Clerk in 2023. She will use her professional skills and compassion for people to ensure that the Clerk’s office continues to remain accessible to the residents of Bethlehem for the services and information they need.

Town Justice
REELECT ANDY KIRBY

Judge Kirby has proudly served as a Bethlehem Town Justice since 2014.  Prior to being elected, he served nine years in Bethlehem Town Court as a Town Prosecutor.  During his eleven years on the bench, Judge Kirby has handled over 40,000 criminal, vehicle and traffic, landlord/tenant, and small claims cases. Judge Kirby has worked with and earned the respect of local and state law enforcement, the Albany County District Attorney’s office, the Albany County Public Defenders’ office, as well as the many local criminal defense attorneys who regularly appear in court.  

The Bethlehem Justice Court is one of the busiest town courts in New York and it typically receives complements from the attorneys and their clients on how well it functions in a fair, timely and efficient manner.  In addition to handling the many responsibilities of the Bethlehem Town Court, Judge Kirby also volunteers as an Albany Family Court Accessible Magistrate acting in place of the Youth Part of the Albany County Family Court when it is not in session.  He has also served as an Acting Albany and Rensselaer City Court Judge, and an Acting Colonie Town Judge.

In addition to his judicial experience, Judge Kirby is a nationally recognized trial attorney and maintains a private law practice at the law firm of Conway & Kirby, which is located at the Four Corners in the center of town.  As a small business owner, Judge Kirby manages attorneys, paralegals, and support staff daily.  He regularly handles some of the most difficult types of cases and appears before various courts and juries throughout New York State.   

Judge Kirby is married to Amy Conway, who grew up in Delmar.  They have three children ages 23, 20 and 17. Their family is firmly rooted in this community. Their children have attended Bethlehem Central High School, Bethlehem Middle School, and Eagle Elementary School. They have been involved in many sports and performing arts programs our community has to offer. Over these years, Judge Kirby has helped coach his children’s recreational sport teams and theatrical performances.