"Politics is too serious a matter to be left to the politicians" is a quote that helps explain why I am running for election to represent NY District #17 in the US Congress.  

I am a father, a husband, a son, a brother, an uncle, a neighbor, a coach and a soldier that has answered the call to service for this great nation - but I am not a politician!  My decision to run was founded on the adage that politics is defined as the ability to foretell what is going to happen tomorrow, next week, next month and next year. And to then have the ability afterwards to explain why it didn't happen (Winston Churchill).  

I want to bring a fresh approach, an uncluttered vision, a renewed set of fundamentals to the role and not have to explain why things didn't happen as predicted or promised.  I will offer solutions that are rooted in the importance of our future - our children - and how, individually and collectively, we bear the responsibility of insuring that America stays the land of opportunity.  This is an amazing country and with hard work you can achieve anything; this formula is not unique to a certain group, it has been and must stay available to everyone.  

I was born in the district (in the Bronx) and have chosen to live and raise my children in the district (West Nyack), my foundation and understanding of the issues within the district is rock solid, I am your friend and neighbor. 

For almost 17 years the district has been under the same leadership, with the same set of priorities and promises, with the same results and explanations.  There has been more than enough time to do the right thing, to make the right moves, and produce the promised actions; but it has remained politics as usual.  

The district encompasses parts of the Bronx, Westchester County, and Rockland County and it includes incredibly diverse neighborhoods like Riverdale, Woodlawn, Norwood, and Wakefield in the Bronx; Mount Vernon and parts of Yonkers, Irvington, Dobbs Ferry, Hastings-on-Hudson and Tarrytown in Westchester; and the towns of Ramapo, Orangetown and the southern half of Clarkstown in Rockland County.  Throughout my life in the Bronx and Rockland I have watched these and other neighborhoods evolve from unappreciated parts of the suburban NY landscape to become vibrant communities with mature residential, industrial, and commercial centers that are in dire need of help in this economic climate.  

It is time for a different approach and I am the person with the integrity and passion to provide the answers and be accountable for the results.  My name is hard to forget, York Kleinhandler, and I need your support for US Congress.