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Rus Thompson
Rus Thompson standing in front of the South Grand Island Bridges
Personal details
Born
John L. A. Thompson

(1956-02-11)February 11, 1956
Framingham, Massachusetts, U.S.
DiedMarch 7, 2025(2025-03-07) (aged 69)
Grand Island, New York, U.S.
Political partyRepublican
Other political
affiliations		Taxpayers Party of New York (2010)
Spouse(s)Diane Cahill (div.)
Julianne Wopperer
Children3
Websitehttp://www.rusthompson.com/

Rus Thompson (born John L. A. Thompson; February 11, 1956 - March 7, 2025) was an American political activist. He was one of the main founders of the Taxpayers Party of New York and a leading voice in the Tea Party movement in Western New York.[1]

Early life & career

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Born in Framingham, Massachusetts in 1956, John L. A. Thompson was nicknamed "Rus" by relatives due to the color of his hair.[2] Thompson served in the United States Army at Fort Devens in Massachusetts, serving as a cook, having been honorably discharged in 1979.[3]

After residing in Tucson, Arizona in the 1980s, Thompson and his wife relocated to Grand Island, New York to run construction and concrete sales companies in 1991.[3]

Grand Island toll activism

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Before involving himself in the Tea Party movement, Thompson led the movement to remove toll booths that were at the base of the South Grand Island Bridge. Thompson submitted a petition to the New York State Thruway Authority with over 10,000 signatures to remove the fee that Grand Island residents had to pay while crossing over the Grand Island Bridge. This sentiment was later echoed by Grand Island town supervisor Nate McMurray two decades later, even after the Highway Authority tore down the toll booths at the base of the bridge.[4]

Eventually, State Senator George Maziarz introduced a bill that eliminated the Grand Island toll booths on behalf of Thompson and his group, No Grand Island Tolls.[5]

Tea Party activism

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By 2008, Thompson and his wife, Jul, had gotten involved in the Tea Party movement in Western New York.[3] Alongside businessman Carl Paladino, political operation Michael Caputo and Leonard Roberto, Rus organized a petition effort to get a new political party, the Taxpayers Party of New York onto the ballot in the 2010 New York gubernatorial election.[6][7]

In this election, Thompson convinced Paladino to run for Governor of New York in the Republican Party primary, upsetting the endorsed Republican candidate Rick Lazio.[8][9] Thompson came to notoriety in this election for his role in the Tea Party movement and for serving as Paladino's personal driver and campaign treasuer during the 2010 campaign.[10]

In addition to advising Paladino's gubernatorial campaign, Thompson has assisted numerous campaigns such as those as Jane Corwin as she ran for a seat in the United States House of Representatives and Jill Rowland's campaign for the same role.[11]

Thompson actively opposed the SAFE Act and advocated for Western New York to secede from New York State, becoming the 51st state.[12][13][14]

In 2014, Thompson served as a placeholder while the Erie County Republican Committee searched for a candidate to run for state senator in New York's 60th State Senate district.[15]

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While living in Arizona, Thompson was arrested and served jail time for hit and run while driving under the influence.[16]

In 2017, Thompson was sentenced to three years on probation to avoid jail time after being convicted of voter fraud.[17] Thompson, while living in Niagara Falls, voted in three elections in the town of Grand Island.[18][19]

Personal life

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Thompson married Julianne "Jul" (née Wopperer) in 1991 and the couple moved to Grand Island, New York, where she was from. His first marriage, to Diane Cahill, ended in divorce. Jul is also involved in far-right politics in Buffalo and was present during the January 6th United States Capitol attack, having organized two busloads of Western New Yorkers to attend the rally prior to the attack.[20][21][22][23] At the Capitol, Jul claims that she was maced by Capitol Police.[24]

The Thompsons have three children, eight grandchildren and one great-grandchild as of 2025. [2]

Thompson died in Grand Island after a long illness on March 7, 2025.

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Isenstadt, Alex (April 8, 2011). "Tea party embraces GOP nominee in NY-26". POLITICO.
  2. ^ a b "Rus Thompson Obituary - Kenmore, NY". Dignity Memorial.
  3. ^ a b c "Grand Island toll removal advocate, Tea Party leader Thompson dies". Yahoo News. March 15, 2025.
  4. ^ "New Grand Island Supervisor Reignites Fight to Remove Toll Bridge Fees". spectrumnews1.com.
  5. ^ "Proposed Legislation to Lift Grand Island Tolls". Buffalo Toronto Public Media. February 22, 2008.
  6. ^ "FIRST AMENDED COMPLAINT" (PDF). www.brennancenter.org. December 20, 2010.
  7. ^ "Petitions Filed with the New York State Board of Elections". www.elections.state.ny.us:8080. Archived from the original on August 21, 2008.
  8. ^ Grossman, Andrew (September 24, 2010). "Force Behind Paladino Run Now a Driver". Wall Street Journal – via www.wsj.com.
  9. ^ McCarthy, Robert J. (September 15, 2010). "Paladino steamrolls to stunning upset Leading Lazio By Almost 2-1 Huge margins upstate are key in GOP primary 2". Buffalo News.
  10. ^ "Paladino promises to remake GOP".
  11. ^ "'Tea party' group blasts candidate in N.Y. special election". Los Angeles Times. May 16, 2011.
  12. ^ "T-Shirts for 51st WNY State « WNYMedia.net". wnymedia.net. October 8, 2011. Archived from the original on October 8, 2011.
  13. ^ "NYS SAFE Act shifts to election season". Buffalo Toronto Public Media. June 4, 2013.
  14. ^ "How Does Carl Paladino Get the 'Tea Party' Tag After Teabagging the Tea Partiers? - New York News - Runnin' Scared". November 18, 2010. Archived from the original on November 18, 2010.
  15. ^ "Rus Thompson". Ballotpedia.
  16. ^ Grossman, Andrew (September 28, 2010). "Carl Paladino's Driver, Rus Thompson, Spent Time in Jail for Driving Under the Inlfuence". Wall Street Journal – via www.wsj.com.
  17. ^ Staff reports (May 3, 2017). "Rus Thompson sentenced to probation in voter fraud case". Niagara Gazette.
  18. ^ Community Activist Pleads Guilty To Election Law Violation | Erie County, New York (.gov) https://www4.erie.gov › archive › index.php-1995.html
  19. ^ Political activist rejects plea deal in voter fraud case | News lockportjournal.com https://www.lockportjournal.com › news › political-acti...
  20. ^ A look at the WNY involvement in Jan. 6, one year later WBFO https://www.wbfo.org › crime › its-in-our-backyard-a-l...
  21. ^ Reporter, Robert J. McCarthy News Political (January 6, 2021). "Grand Islander feels 'absolutely justified' participating in assault on Capitol". Buffalo News.
  22. ^ WNY woman describes experience as part of rally leading ... WUTV https://wutv29.com › news › local › wny-woman-descri...
  23. ^ "Jul Thompson, Jefferson Davis, and the Tea Party". The Public. May 18, 2017.
  24. ^ "Grand Island Woman Maced During Chaos at U.S. Capitol Wednesday". spectrumlocalnews.com.
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