ALBANY – Jamie Romeo will serve as Monroe County clerk for the remainder of 2020, filling a vacancy left when fellow Democrat Adam Bello took office as county executive at the start of the year.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo tapped Romeo, a first-term state assemblywoman from Irondequoit, for the vacant clerk's post Thursday, calling her a "true public servant" and a "forceful advocate for Monroe County."

“I am proud to appoint her Monroe County clerk and I am confident that she will continue to do a great job working on behalf of county residents," Cuomo said in a statement.

Romeo, 34, had previously announced she would run for county clerk later this year when the seat is up for a full, four-year term.

With Cuomo's blessing, Romeo will instead take office right away, giving her the advantages of incumbency when voters head to the polls for a potential primary in June and the general election in November.

“I want to thank Governor Cuomo for this tremendous honor and vote of confidence," Romeo said in a statement.

"Serving Monroe County has been a passion of mine since before I could register to vote, and I am humbled at the opportunity to continue serving the residents of our great community."

Romeo running for full term this year, too

When a vacancy occurs in a county clerk's office, state law grants the governor the ability to fill it.

Thursday marked was the second time in four years Cuomo has chosen a Monroe County clerk.

In 2016, he appointed Bello — then the Irondequoit town supervisor — to the post after former Clerk Cheryl Dinolfo, a Republican, won the 2015 county executive race.

Last year, Bello defeated Dinolfo in her re-election bid.

Two Democrats running for clerk's post

Romeo, the former chair of the Monroe County Democratic Committee, had already announced her intention to run for a full term as clerk.

She is one of two Democrats seeking the post.

Jennifer Boutte, who works for CDS Life Transitions, a Webster-based not-for-profit that provides care for the developmentally disabled, announced in December she plans to seek the seat this year.

In a statement, Boutte acknowledged Cuomo was within his rights to appoint someone to the seat.

But Boutte, who is black, suggested Cuomo's appointment of Romeo, who is white, speaks to a "systematic" problem that helps prevent county leadership from being as diverse as the county is.

"I am not fighting to win votes against Jamie," Boutte said. "I am fighting against a system that was structured for candidates such as myself to fail, leaving voters without a choice."

Boutte said she will soon start circulating petitions to get on the primary ballot.

Monroe County GOP Chair Bill Napier also criticized Cuomo's decision, calling it "appalling" because Romeo voted for the Green Light Law, which allowed undocumented immigrants to get driver's licenses in New York.

Napier attempted to tie Romeo to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's decision Wednesday to bar New York residents from applying for programs that allow them to go through expedited border-crossing lanes, which came after the Green Light Law blocked immigration officials' access to New York DMV records.

The Monroe GOP is expected to endorse its candidate in mid-February, according to the party.

"Jamie Romeo's actions as a member of the Assembly have risked national security and resulted in travel and commerce restrictions making her unfit to serve as Monroe County Clerk," Napier said in a statement.

More:Jamie Romeo, seeking to replace Adam Bello, announces run for Monroe County Clerk

One vacancy filled; another created

Romeo's appointment means she will step down from her seat in the Assembly, opening up a vacancy that could be filled by a special election.

Cuomo gave no indication when he plans to call the election to fill the remainder of her Assembly term, which runs through the end of the year.

But the Democratic governor has previously chosen to align special elections on days where voters are already heading to the polls, meaning April 28 — the date of New York's presidential primary — is a possibility.

The presidential primary is separate from New York's state, local and congressional primaries, which are set for June 23.

At least two Democrats are seeking Romeo's Assembly seat: Monroe County Legislator Justin Wilcox and Sarah Clark, deputy state director for Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand.

If a special election were to be called, Wilcox would have the inside track at the Democratic nomination, since he was recently won the endorsement of the Monroe County Democratic Committee.

There are no primaries for special elections, meaning political leaders pick their party's candidates.

"Women and people of color should be allowed to have a fair shot at primaries," said Rachel Barnhart, a Monroe County legislator. "When you make appointments and call special elections, it ends up hurting challengers."

More:Bello defeats Dinolfo, becomes first Democratic Monroe County executive in nearly 30 years

Jon Campbell is a New York state government reporter for the USA TODAY Network. He can be reached at JCAMPBELL1@Gannett.com or on Twitter at @JonCampbellGAN.

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