Dorcey Applyrs, Albany city auditor, at a news conference in 2024.

Albany voters have an enviable array of choices in the upcoming Democratic mayoral primary: four good candidates who each bring clear strengths to the race.

Indeed, if someone could blend the quartet’s best qualities into one person, they might well create a pretty great candidate. But since a single choice must be made in a race that usually determines who the next mayor is in this heavily Democratic city, we think one candidate rises above the rest: Dorcey Applyrs.

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Ms. Applyrs, who holds a doctorate in public heath, comes to the race with a strong resume, having had the opportunity for the past five years to study the workings of city government as its independent auditor. The office’s most recent and arguably most consequential audit, on Mayor Kathy Sheehan’s implementation of the city’s Equity Agenda, found progress but uncompromisingly identified nearly two dozen areas in which the city could be doing a better job.

As a candidate for mayor, Ms. Applyrs offers a multifaceted “First Term Action Plan,” starting with public safety strategies that include a stronger recruitment effort, with internships and mentorships for young people to attract and develop potential candidates for police work. She has plans for better analyzing, addressing and solving crime through data and artificial intelligence, reducing illegal firearms, and........

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