The Broome County Republican Party selected a new chairman this month.

Benji Federman was elected after his predecessor, Bijoy Datta, stepped down from the role. Federman’s top priorities as chairman include building relationships with and recruiting young voters in the community, modernizing the county committee infrastructure and electing more diverse, qualified Republican candidates to various offices under the local, state and federal governments.

Federman expressed his hope to improve the reputation of the Republican party.

“We’re going to work hard to improve the party’s brand by cutting through national divisive politics and highlighting our compassionate local elected officials,” Federman wrote in an email. “It’s so important that we grow our team and train the next generation of Republicans who want to work in politics and serve their community.”

Federman said he sees an economic decline facing New York state as people move elsewhere for more affordable housing, and that he would like to focus on reducing costs for residents. In addition, Federman said he would like to correct certain quality of life issues that discourage students from staying in the area after they graduate.

Federman wrote about his experience volunteering on his first political campaign for then-New York State Sen. Fred Akshar, and how it inspired him to pursue this career path.

“You get a much better sense of the needs of the area when you spend time speaking in the neighborhoods and homes of those you hope to help,” Federman wrote. “I pursued this position because it allows me to continue my passion for helping elect candidates to office so they can pursue their own journey of making the community a better place. It’s very rewarding to attend an inauguration for a candidate you helped elect knowing their success is a reflection of your hard work behind the scenes.”

Logan Blakeslee, the vice president of the Binghamton University College Republicans and a senior double-majoring in history and political science, said he hopes to see the issues of housing and crime addressed by new leadership.

“Myself, and loved ones have had to deal with rising crime in the area and the police seem ill-equipped to handle it,” Blakeslee said. “Federman has an excellent working relationship with Sheriff [Akshar], so I believe there will be good progress on this topic.”

Kevin Vorrath, the secretary of the BU College Republicans and a senior double-majoring in political science and economics, said he felt Federman’s election as the youngest GOP chair in the state would give youth a voice.

“I am hopeful that he utilizes his role to show that young people can be successful leaders and energizes other young conservatives to seek out leadership roles that will help grow the party’s outreach,” Vorrath wrote in an email.