COLUMBUS – On Election Day Nov. 8, Town of Columbus voters have not two, but three choices for a new supervisor to lead their government through 2014.

Voters may already be familiar with former Supervisor George Coates and journalist Tom Grace. A third candidate, Brandon Loomis, brings a most unique perspective to the job.

At 28 years of age, Loomis is the youngest contender in recent memory to run for Chenango County supervisor. According to the Chenango County Board of Elections, before Loomis, incumbent Plymouth Supervisor Jerry Kreiner, who is running unopposed for a seventh term, was voted into office when he was 31.

But what Loomis lacks in age, he makes up with the type of rural life experience that characterizes this small (pop. 975) town in the most northeastern part of the county. Grazing-based farms rule in Columbus, and Loomis is the only full-time farmer in the running.

In fact, agribusiness is all Loomis has ever known. At 16, upon the death of his father, the Pennsylvania native began dividing his time between high school and dairy farming. After graduation, he shelved his college dreams to keep the family’s business afloat. Later, working alongside his uncle, the two eventually moved to New York where today they manage a 50-cow operation on 225 acres.