Troy

Patrick Madden won the Democratic primary for mayor on Wednesday, edging out City Council President Rodney Wiltshire, who announced he would wage an active campaign as the Working Families Party candidate.

Madden, who led Wiltshire by five votes when the polls closed Thursday, won the election by 45 votes, 821-776, after the 117 absentee ballots and a handful of affidavit ballots were opened by the Rensselaer County Board of Elections. Ernest Everett finished third with 264 votes.

Madden and Wiltshire shook hands briefly after the tabulation.

"It came down to experience," Madden said about his victory. The longtime executive director of TRIP said he has a track record of bringing people together.

As for his goals if elected, he said: "Downtown is doing great. It's time to bring this to the neighborhoods."

Madden, who began the campaign with no party affiliation before enrolling as a Democrat, now moves into a four-way general election to succeed Democratic Mayor Lou Rosamilia, who opted not to seek a second four-year term.

In addition to Madden and Wiltshire, the field includes Republican Councilman Jim Gordon and Revolutionary Party candidate Jack Cox Jr.

After the absentee ballot tally, Wiltshire held a news conference to announce that he would actively campaign as the Working Families Party candidate. Many of his key campaign figures are Working Families Party members.

He said he expects to carry his Democratic support in the primary into the general election and build on it.

Attacking the city Democratic Committee as a machine, Wiltshire said it had to run two candidates — Madden and Everett — against him in order to win the primary. Madden was the Democrats' endorsed candidate in the primary.

City Democratic Chairman Jack McCann said he was saddened by Wiltshire's decision to continue to campaign actively.

"I was hoping we would be united. Mr. Wiltshire apparently doesn't want to do that," McCann said. "Now he wants to destroy the party."

Gordon won the Green Party write-in campaign to secure that line in November along with the Conservative, Independence, Reform and GOP lines. Madden, Wiltshire and Cox appear only once on the ballot.

The 7,934 Democrats are the largest bloc among the city's 20,806 voters. Gordon's five parties represent 6,118 voters, including 3,411 Republicans. Wiltshire's Working Families has 453 voters.

There are 6,137 unaffiliated voters. The Revolutionary Party was formed solely for this election and has no enrolled voters.

The counting of absentee ballots in other city races produced some surprises.

In the Democratic primary in the 5th City Council District,, Councilwoman Lynn Kopka pulled out a surprising victory. David Bissember led Kopka 228-214 before the absentee ballots were counted. Kopka received 21 absentee votes to Bissember's 2 to win 235-230. Kopka had taken down her campaign signs, assuming she couldn't make up the difference.

Wiltshire won the Green Party write-in primary for 3rd City Council District receiving the only vote cast. The Board of Elections said as Wiltshire is on the ballot as the Working Families mayoral canddiate he cannot appear as a council candidate.

kcrowe@timesunion.com • 518-454-5084 • @KennethCrowe