Two Picks for Bender’s Seat
In a fast turnaround, the two major parties have selected candidates for the upcoming special election in the Town of Southampton to fill the vacancy left by Brad Bender, who resigned late last month after pleading guilty to a drug-related charge.
The Southampton Town Democratic Committee nominated Julie R. Lofstad on Sunday, and the Southampton Town Republican Committee chose Richard W. Yastrzemski for the position during a meeting on Tuesday night. The election will be held on Jan. 26, a date selected on Nov. 30. By state law, Southampton Town had to hold a special election 60 to 90 days from Mr. Bender’s resignation. Nominating petitions were due at the Suffolk County Board of Elections today.
They are names voters should be familiar with, as they ran in November’s regular election — Ms. Lofstad for town board and Mr. Yastrzemski for supervisor.
Mr. Yastrzemski is a longtime Southampton Village Board member and the deputy mayor there. He received 44 percent of the vote on the Republican and Conservative lines in November in losing to supervisor-elect Jay Schneiderman.
“The Southampton Town Republican Committee is excited to hit the ground running,” Bill Wright, the party’s chairman, said of Mr. Yastrzemski. “His credentials as Southampton Deputy Mayor make him the most qualified candidate for town board.”
Ms. Lofstad finished third in a race for two seats, behind Christine Scalera, the Republican incumbent, and John V. Bouvier, a Democratic candidate. Mr. Bouvier will take office in January to replace Bridget Fleming, a Democrat who successfully ran to take over for Mr. Schneiderman in the Suffolk County Legislature.
“This is a chance to complete the leadership team,” Mr. Schneiderman said in a statement. “Julie would be an excellent town board member. She is dedicated to improving our quality of life and preventing overdevelopment. I need Julie in order to move Southampton forward.”
A Hampton Bays resident, Ms. Lofstad and her husband run a commercial fishing business. She founded the Hampton Bays Mothers Association.
Mr. Bender had two years left on his four-year term.