Two Forums in Two Days
Candidates for East Hampton Town and Suffolk County office will appear together at two major forums this week — a Concerned Citizens of Montauk meet-the-candidates event on Sunday and a League of Women Voters debate in East Hampton on Monday.
The Montauk event, the group’s 43rd, will take place at the Montauk Firehouse starting at 1 p.m. Typically the only time when all candidates appear together in Montauk, it often draws a standing-room-only audience.
Larry Cantwell, who is running unopposed for supervisor on the Democratic, Independence, and Working Families tickets, as well as Job Potter and Kathee Burke-Gonzalez, who are running for town board on the Democratic and Working Families tickets, and the opponents Dominick Stanzione and their opponents, Fred Overton, who are running on the Republican, Independence, and Conservative lines, are expected to attend.
Also expected to attend are incumbent County Legislator Jay Schneiderman, who has the Independence and Democratic Party backing, and his Republican challenger, Chris Nuzzi; the incumbent town assessor, Eugene DePasquale, and his challenger, Joe Bloecker, the two candidates for town justice, Steve Tekulsky and Carl Irace, and all the candidates for town trustee.
All of the candidates will have an opportunity to introduce themselves, state their positions, and ask a question of their opponent. The public will also have the opportunity to ask questions of the candidates.
The candidates for town board and county legislator will meet again on Monday at 7 p.m. at the East Hampton Village Emergency Services Building.
The League of Women Voters event will begin with a debate between Mr. Schneiderman and Mr. Nuzzi, who is a Southampton Town councilman.
Following that, Ms. Burke-Gonzalez and Mr. Potter will debate Mr. Stanzione and Mr. Overton.
Mr. Cantwell will introduce himself but not take part in the debate. The league has also invited other candidates for town office to introduce themselves.
The league’s voter services co-chairwoman, Anne Marshall, will moderate the debate, with the questions provided by the audience as well as a panel consisting of David Rattray, the editor of The East Hampton Star, Joseph Shaw, the executive editor of the Press News Group, and Estelle Gelman of the league.
The league will also host a debate next Thursday at 7 p.m. at the Rogers Memorial Library among Southampton Town candidates and Mr. Schneiderman and Mr. Nuzzi.
The Southampton debate will pit the incumbent town supervisor, Anna Throne-Holst, on the Democratic and Independence lines, against her challenger, Linda Kabot, with Republican and Conservative party backing. Also debating will be the four candidates for two openings on the town board, the Democrats Brad Bender and Frank Zappone and Republicans Stan Glinka and Jeff Mansfield. Other candidates will be invited to introduce themselves.
The Southampton debate will be moderated by the league’s other voter services co-chairwoman, Carol Mellor. Questions will be provided by the audience as well as Mr. Shaw, Bryan Boyhan, editor of The Sag Harbor Express, and Judy Samuelson of the league.
Both debates will be videotaped for later viewing on East Hampton’s LTV, channel 20, and Southampton Town’s SEA-TV, channel 22.