Shaun Gilliland has served 12 years as Town of Willsboro Supervisor and for the past 6 years has been the chair of the Essex County Board of Supervisors. He recently announced that even though he is on the November ballot, he will not serve again if he wins.
Gilliland says a number of issues led to his decision not to accept the supervisor’s position again if he wins the November election.
“This last year I had major open heart surgery. I had a bowel defect that I had to get some specialized surgery on to repair. I believe I am quite healthy. But I would say that it just kind of made me think, you know, set priorities and things," Gilliland explains. "I just turned 67 which for my group full retirement age. When I had retired from the Navy and come up here my intent was to farm, which is my passion and I do farm. I entered public service because the Town of Willsboro, the community of Willsboro, was so good to us and I wanted to serve the community. And I think I’ve done a lot of good, accomplished a lot both at the town and the county level. And you just reach a point where you say it’s time for a new generation to come in.”
Gilliland served on the Willsboro town board and planning board before he won the supervisor’s position. Looking back, he is proud that the County Legislature has remained nonpartisan as a number of issues were addressed
“At the county level I think overall the biggest thing I think that we’ve accomplished is bringing the county board to perform at a very high level. We are not a partisan board in any way shape or form. We have Republicans. We have Democrats. We have Independents. But the decisions and the votes that are made never have anything to do with partisan politics. And that has allowed us to do things and make the right decisions moving forward to solve problems in the county. One of them is the development of a county-wide EMS system. The others are moving forward with physical projects that have been languishing for sometimes decades. We’re constantly moving I think in the right direction." Gilliland continues, "I mean all kinds of things that I’m proud of that we’ve done. I think most of all we have a high functioning Board of Supervisors that legislate smart.”
Gilliland acknowledges that despite the successes, his tenure as chair of the Board of Supervisors has been challenging.
“We’ve had some economic issues at the national level that affected us. And of course carrying the county and the towns through the whole COVID crisis in ’20 and ’21. That was probably the greatest challenge that I experienced because, you know, there was no playbook and we had to do what was right the entire time," Gilliland recalled. "And I think we did a great job and the county came out the other side in very good shape and in very good financial shape and we never had to lay anybody off like other counties did.”
Gilliland lost the Republican primary in June to Darren Dickerson but will be on the ballot under the Willsboro-Reber Party line. Gilliland confirmed that it is too late for him to be removed from the ballot
“I was defeated in the Republican primary, so I don’t have the Republican line. It’s kind of a minor position on the independent line and I figured that by announcing at this point that I’ve made my decision it won’t have much affect on the election.”
“Shaun Gilliland, how much did GOP politics play in your decision to retire?” Bradley asks.
“Huh. I will say the GOP as far as the larger GOP, um, I’m a moderate Republican. I’m a, I guess you could call me a McCain Republican. I am not happy with the way that the GOP has gone," Gilliland says. "It’s certainly not the party that I came up to know or believe in. And so yes it was a factor. It wasn’t the biggest factor, but it was a factor in my decision.”
Gilliland’s term expires on December 31st.
