These automated candidate pitches serve only to annoy people. It seems that every election season, something goes wrong with the intrusive phone messages.

This year, a robo call evidently went haywire and woke voters up last Thursday between 1 and 3 a.m. The dead-of-night calls were made on behalf of Dominic Volpe, a Democrat running against incumbent County Legislator Goerge Oros.

The problem for Oros, was that it seemed as if the computer-generated calls came from HIS campaign.

I got a letter from a Shrub Oak woman, Jennifer Browne, who was rudely awakened but mistakenly put the blame on Oros.

She wrote: “Please let hm (Oros) know that we do not need another inconsiderate, obnoxious man in public office. When the phone rings at 1 a.m., it invokes a feeling of panic—and to have it happen over and over again is plain harassment.”

Oros put out a press release disavowing any connection to the calls.
He said:

“The caller identified herself as Peekskill reisdent Carmella Shubert, who is may opponent’s mother-in-law. However, at the onset of these calls my name is mentioned, creating confusion as to the originator of the calls.”

As a result, many people, like the aforementioned Ms. Browne, complained about an “Oros call.”

Oros said he doubted that Volpe’s campaign deliberately did this. However, he said, “Whether this was intentional or a mistake, it does not reflect well on either the ethics or competency of my opponent.”

I think the calls should simply cease altogether. No one likes to be interrupted by them at any hour.