Political Briefs 10.12.17
Town Trustee Candidate Forums
Voters in East Hampton Town will have at least three chances in the coming week to hear from the candidates for East Hampton Town trustee.
The Long Island Fishing Association and the Montauk Boatmen and Captains Association will host the candidates for a question-and-answer session at the Montauk Firehouse on Tuesday from 7 to 8:30 p.m.
On Wednesday and next Thursday, the East Hampton Historical Society will offer an overview of the Dongan Patent, which set the format for East Hampton Town’s oldest governing body, established in 1686. Candidates will introduce themselves briefly and then answer questions. In East Hampton Town, voters select all nine members of the board of trustees every two years. Republican candidates will be on hand on Wednesday from 6 to 8 p.m. at Clinton Academy on East Hampton’s Main Street; Democrats will be there the same time next Thursday.
Questions can be submitted in advance by calling the historical society at 631-324-6850 or emailing [email protected]. Reservations are not required, but seating is limited.
Forum Today
Concerned Citizens of Montauk and the New York League of Conservation Voters Education Fund will co-host a candidates forum focusing on the environment today at Scoville Hall in Amagansett from 5 to 7 p.m. It is free and open to the public.
Councilman Peter Van Scoyoc and Manny Vilar, the Democratic and Republican candidates for East Hampton Town supervisor, are scheduled to attend, as are their running mates, the Democrats Jeffrey Bragman and Councilwoman Kathee Burke-Gonzalez, and the Republicans Paul Giardina and Jerry Larsen.
East Hampton Candidates Debate
The League of Women Voters of the Hamptons will sponsor a debate featuring candidates for East Hampton Town Board on Monday at 7 p.m. at the Emergency Services Building in East Hampton Village. Councilman Peter Van Scoyoc and Manny Vilar, the Democratic and Republican candidates for East Hampton Town supervisor, respectively, are scheduled to attend, as are their running mates, the Democrats Jeffrey Bragman and Councilwoman Kathee Burke-Gonzalez, and the Republicans Paul Giardina and Jerry Larsen.
Susan Wilson, the League’s co-president, will moderate the debate. The candidates will make timed opening and closing statements and answer questions submitted by a panel of journalists and the League, as well as by the audience. Candidates for other offices on the November ballot have been invited to introduce themselves by name and the office for which they are running.
Southampton Town Debates
The Press News Group will host a debate between candidates for Southampton Town Board and supervisor tonight at the Southampton Arts Center. The program will be split into two sections, one for the candidates for the town board — Tommy John Schiavoni and Julie Lofstad on the Democratic ticket and Thea Dombrowski-Fry and Stan Glinka on the Republican ticket — and one for the supervisor candidates, Ray Overton, the Republican, and Jay Schneiderman, the current supervisor and an Independence Party member, who is making his first re-election bid on the Independence and Democratic tickets. The program is to be held between 7 and 9 p.m.
Other upcoming debates include one sponsored by the Hampton Bays Civic Association at the Hampton Bays Senior Center on Oct. 23 at 7 p.m. and a League of Women Voters debate on Oct. 26 at 7 p.m. at the Rogers Memorial Library in Southampton. The latter will be moderated by Cathy Peacock, the league’s government committee co-chairwoman.
Meet the Southampton Candidates
The Southampton Business Alliance will sponsor a meet the candidates’ forum at the Southampton Inn on Hill Street on Wednesday from 5:30 to 7 p.m. All of the town candidates have been invited to meet members of the alliance and discuss the future of business in the Town of Southampton. Wine and cheese, beer, and soft drinks will be served. Admission is $25. Tickets were to have been reserved by today.
Horowitz Fund-Raiser
A fund-raiser for the re-election campaign for Scott Horowitz, a Southampton Town trustee, will be held on Wednesday at the V.F.W. building on Old Riverhead Road in Westhampton Beach. Tickets start at $60 per person or $100 per couple. The event will be held from 6 to 8 p.m. Checks can be made payable to the Friends of Scott Horowitz, P.O. Box 543, East Quogue 11942.
Thiele Staying Seated
Assemblyman Fred W. Thiele Jr. will not seek the nomination to represent New York’s First Congressional District.
In an email to The Star last week, Mr. Thiele said that Democratic Party leaders and community activists had approached him about the seat held by Lee Zeldin, a Republican serving his second term. “I gave careful consideration to leaving my seat in the State Assembly to run for Congress,” he said. “It is humbling that so many would think I would be a good congressman. After careful deliberation, I have decided to not seek the congressional nomination and will be running for re-election to the State Assembly in 2018.”
“First and foremost, I believe I can accomplish more for eastern Long Island as a senior member and leader in Albany than as a freshman congressman,” said Mr. Thiele, who is chairman of the Small Business Committee and a member of the Ways and Means Committee. He also has assignments on the Education, Environmental Conservation, and Transportation Committees. “There is much unfinished business with water quality issues, improved public transit for the South Fork, the renaissance of the Southampton campus, and advocacy for the commercial fishing industry, among the many issues that will continue to be my priorities.”
“From a political perspective,” Mr. Thiele continued, “it has been my belief from the outset that the key to providing new progressive leadership for the First Congressional District was early consensus around a single candidate to oppose the incumbent. Such a consensus does not exist at this time. I look forward to working as a running mate with whoever is the Democratic nominee to oppose the incumbent.” C.W.
East Hamptoner to Challenge Zeldin
Perry Gershon, an East Hampton resident and potential Democratic candidate for New York’s First Congressional District, raised more than $500,000 in the period between filing his candidacy paperwork on July 15 and Sept. 30, his campaign announced last week.
“Since I entered this race, I’ve spoken with hundreds of residents and listened to their concerns about the extremist positions Lee Zeldin has taken,” Mr. Gershon said in a statement. “Long Islanders are hungry for new leadership and today’s filing reflects an encouraging vote of confidence in our campaign. We need to make sure that Long Islanders have a representative who understands their needs and who will fight for their interests.” Mr. Zeldin, a Republican, is in his second term in Congress.
“Over the coming months, I’ll continue to speak with people in communities across Suffolk County to let them know they can count on me to fight for high paying jobs, affordable health care, and a clean environment,” he said.