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Election 2024: Riverhead Voters’ Guide

With Election Day less than two weeks away, and countywide early voting starting this Saturday, Oct. 26, candidates from both sides of the aisle are ramping up their campaign efforts across the North Fork. And while the presidential race is taking up much of the attention — and oxygen — there are several other vital federal, state and county seats on the line. Here is a guide to what you can  expect on this year’s ballot, including candidate profiles, details on state and county propositions, early voting and Election Day polling information — plus a sample ballot. 

Voter registration deadline: Saturday, Oct. 26

Early voting dates: Saturday, Oct. 26 through Sunday, Nov. 3

Early voting location: Suffolk County voters can cast ballots at any of the 28 polling stations listed on the county board of elections website including the following area locations: 

  • Southold Town Recreation Center, 970 Peconic Lane, Peconic
  • Riverhead Town Hall, 4 West Second St., Riverhead
  • Manorville Fire Department, 16 Silas Carter Rd., Manorville
  • Robert Reid Recreation Center, Defense Hill Road, Shoreham 

Early voting hours: 

  • Oct. 26, 27 and 28: 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. 
  • Oct. 29 and  30: 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. 
  • Oct. 31, Nov. 1: Noon to 8 p.m. 
  • Nov. 2 and 3: 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. 

Election Day: Tuesday, Nov. 5

Polling hours:  6 a.m. to 9 p.m. 

Click here to find the current Election Day polling station for each district and enter the voter’s name, date of birth and ZIP code. 


Who is on the ballot 


UNITED STATES SENATE: NEW YORK STATE 

INCUMBENT: KIRSTEN GILLIBRAND (D-Albany)

Party lines: Democratic, Working Families

Ms. Gillibrand was selected to the Senate by former governor David Patterson in 2009 after then-Sen. Hilary Clinton was appointed to serve as U.S. Secretary of State. She won a special election to retain the seat in 2010 and was reelected to full terms in 2012 and 2018. Her current term ends in January. Prior to becoming a U.S. Senator, she worked as an attorney, law clerk, campaign staffer and special counsel to the secretary of Housing and Urban Development. She also represented New York’s 20th Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives for one term. In the Senate, she is chair of the Armed Services Subcommittee on Emerging Threats and Capabilities and serves on the Select Committee on Intelligence, and the agriculture and aging committees. 

Her platform: According to the priorities outlined on her website, if reelected, Ms. Gillibrand wants to ensure everyone has access to affordable, high-quality health care. In terms of revitalizing the economy, the Democrat wants to keep “good jobs” in New York State and is pushing for a national paid leave program. As a longtime member of the Senate agriculture committee, she pledges to pass policies that benefit rural communities and promote economic prosperity. She is also a strong advocate for immigration reform and as a U.S. Senator she hopes to focus on improving the current immigration system. 

CHALLENGER: MIKE SAPRAICONE (R-Oyster Bay)

Party lines: Republican, Conservative 

Mr. Sapraicone served in the New York City Police Department for 20 years and retired as a detective in 2000. He launched his own small business, Squad Security, to provide security services to New York-based companies — including the American Stock Exchange — and it is now recognized as a global security firm based on Long Island. He has been a member of the National Association of Chiefs of Police, Associated Licensed Detectives of New York State and the American Academy for Professional Law Enforcement. He also served as president of the Seaford Union Free School District Board of Education and is a senior trustee of the Museum of American Armor in Old Bethpage. 

His platform: If elected, the key issues Mr. Sapracione will focus on include public safety, border security, affordability, quality of life and integrity in government, according to his website. As a former police officer, he believes in supporting and providing necessary resources to law enforcement. As a U.S. Senator, he pledges “to repeal the cashless bail law” and pass legislation preventing local governments from defunding their police departments. He will support bipartisan efforts to combat inflation, restore the state and local tax (SALT) deduction and ease the tax burden on New York homeowners. He opposes the MTA’s congestion pricing program and hopes to increase federal funding to local school districts, hospitals and New York’s “environmental treasures.”  


U.S. CONGRESS: NEW YORK DISTRICT 1

INCUMBENT: NICK LALOTA (R-Amityville)

Party lines: Republican, Conservative 

Mr. LaLota is currently serving his first term in the U.S. House of Representatives for New York’s 1st Congressional District. He was previously appointed and later twice elected to the Amityville Board of Trustees, is a former chief of staff for the Suffolk County Legislature and was commissioner of the Suffolk County Board of Elections. A graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy, he rose to the rank of lieutenant while serving in the military. 

His platform: Mr. LaLota’s main priorities for a second term are to “secure the border, tackle inflation and always put Long Island first.” He pointed to his success in securing more than “$150 million in critical funding for our communities” during his first term and pledged to build on that success by “lowering taxes, creating good-paying jobs and addressing the unique needs of Long Island.”

CHALLENGER: JOHN AVLON (D-Sag Harbor)

Party lines: Democratic, Common Sense

Mr. Avlon is a former CNN commentator who previously worked as editor-in-chief of The Daily Beast. He is also an author and presidential historian. Before joining The Daily Beast, he was a columnist and associate editor for The New York Sun, as well as a speechwriter for former New York City mayor Rudy Giuliani during his second term and in the aftermath of 9/11. He was a co-founder of the bipartisan, not-for-profit political group, No Labels.

His platform: Despite running on the Democratic line, Mr. Avlon is a self-proclaimed centrist who said he believes in “rebuilding the middle” and closing the gap between the increasingly polarized political parties. If elected, his legislative priorities include working toward comprehensive immigration reform, restoring SALT deductions, expanding the Child Tax Credit and working to make Long Island a leader in the next generation of green technology.


NEW YORK STATE SENATE: District 1 

INCUMBENT: ANTHONY PALUMBO (R-New Suffolk)

Party lines: Republican, Conservative 

Mr. Palumbo is the incumbent state Senator representing District 1 and is seeking his third term in the state high chamber. He first won the seat in 2020, replacing retiring Republican predecessor Kenneth La Valle, New York’s longest-serving state representative. Before joining the Senate, Mr. Palumbo served in the state Assembly since 2013. A practicing lawyer, he previously worked as an assistant Suffolk County district attorney before starting a private practice on the North Fork and later joining the Legislature. This is his seventh run for political office. 

His platform: For this reelection campaign, Mr. Palumbo’s key priorities for District 1 are affordable housing, public safety and protecting the environment. He believes in improving resiliency measures, maintaining local government control, particularly in matters of housing and community development, and said he understands the importance of balancing the need for new development with open space preservation. He supports stronger laws to combat the fentanyl epidemic, including backing Chelsey’s Law which allows law enforcement officials to charge drug dealers linked to fatal overdoses with manslaughter.

CHALLENGER: SARAH ANKER (D-Mt. Sinai)

Party lines: Democratic, Common Sense

Ms. Anker served as a Suffolk County Legislator from 2011 until she was term-limited in 2023. She previously worked as the first director of the energy department for Brookhaven Town, where she launched the Green Homes Go Solar program, which she said created enhanced renewable energy opportunities for the town’s 500,000 residents. Her experience working with the Mt. Sinai Civic Association led her to spearhead the creation of the Community Health and Environment Coalition, a not-for-profit devoted to cancer research and combating the region’s historically high cancer rates. 

Her platform: If elected to the state Senate, Ms. Anker pledged to continue to advocate for improved cancer-rate data collection and analysis from the state Department of Health. She said she will work to protect safe drinking water, improve water quality and enhance coastal resiliency across the East End. Regarding more affordable housing communities for young working families, Ms. Anker suggests looking into potential development of residential and commercial districts near colleges and transportation hubs. She is a supporter of Chelsey’s Law and believes more funding should be put toward drug enforcement and misuse prevention.


NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY: DISTRICT 2

INCUMBENT: JODI GIGLIO (R-Baiting Hollow)

Party lines: Republican, Conservative

With her current term in the Assembly ending in January, Ms. Giglio is running for reelection for a second time. Prior to becoming an assemblywoman, she served 11 years on the Riverhead Town Board. When her predecessor in the Assembly, Anthony Palumbo, ran for state Senate in 2020, Ms. Giglio launched her campaign and won his former seat — and her first reelection in November 2022. Ms. Giglio currently serves on the assembly’s governmental employees, labor, transportation and people with disabilities committees and on the Joint Legislative Women’s Caucus.

Her platform: Ms. Giglio’s priorities if reelected include reducing costs for taxpayers, eliminating wasteful state spending, advocating for educational funding and farmland preservation and combating public consumption of recreational marijuana. When it comes to affordable housing, Ms. Giglio believes in housing that benefits people who currently live and work in the region, not those who come from other parts of the state. She has also consistently pushed back on short-term rentals, including during her tenure on the Riverhead Town Board. Ms. Giglio also agrees with preserving farmland, but thinks there needs to be a balance with development. As a staunch advocate for school aid, Ms. Giglio has rallied against state budget cuts to school aid this past year.
Ms. Giglio’s Democratic challenger, Tricia Chiaramonte, will be listed on the ballot, however the Suffolk County Democratic Committee confirmed she is not running an active campaign and she could not be contacted by the News-Review for profile information.

RIVERHEAD TOWN JUSTICE

INCUMBENT: SEAN WALTER (R-Wading River)

Party lines: Republican, Conservative

Mr. Walter is a former Riverhead Town supervisor who was elected judge following the death of longtime Town Justice Allen Smith in 2020. Mr. Walter was town supervisor for eight years before losing to Laura Jens-Smith in 2017. He also served as a deputy Riverhead Town attorney for five years, and has maintained a private law practice for nearly two decades. Before becoming an attorney, he worked as an environmental manager for the 106th Rescue Wing of the New York Air National Guard in Westhampton Beach and as a groundwater tester at the Brookhaven Town landfill. He has a law degree from St. John’s Law School and a bachelor’s degree from SUNY/Binghamton.

CHALLENGER: WILLIAM CONDON (D-Aquebogue)

Party lines: Democratic

Mr. Condon, a retired New York State Supreme Court justice who lives in Aquebogue, was endorsed by the Riverhead Democratic Party in May to run against Mr. Walter in the June primary and November general election. He served on the state court for 14 years and is a past president of the New York State Association of Supreme Court Justices. Among his more notable cases is the 2022 Supreme Court trial of ex-NYPD officer Michael Valva, who was found guilty and sentenced to 25 years to life in prison for the murder of his 8-yearold son, Thomas.


Ballot propositions

There are two propositions on the ballot this November, one statewide and the other county-specific. 

Proposition 1 deals with updating the language in the Equal Rights Amendment of the New York State Constitution to expand the number of  protected classes. 

The original language read: “No person shall be denied the equal protection of the laws of this state or any subdivision thereof. No person shall, because of race, color, creed or religion, be subjected to any discrimination in his or her civil rights by any other person or by any firm, corporation, or institution, or by the state or any agency or subdivision of the state.” 

The proposed new language adds the following protected classes to the amendment: ethnicity, national origin, age, disability, sex — including sexual orientation, gender identity and gender expression— pregnancy, pregnancy outcomes, and reproductive health care and autonomy.

Advocates say the changes will ensure that individuals in these classes, including transgender people and people who have had abortions, cannot be discriminated against. It also seeks to ensure that the rights of one protected class do not take precedence over the rights of any other. 

Proposition 2 seeks to extend and revise the drinking water protection program by creating a new water quality restoration fund supported by adding a 1/8% sales tax to all purchases, with revenue to be used for clean water projects. Advocates say a “yes” vote ensures Suffolk County funding through 2060 for clean water initiatives to protect drinking water, improve sewage treatment capabilities and support water quality in all bays, harbors and waterways. Approving this county-level funding also opens potential funding streams at the state and federal level.

Staff writers Brendan O’Connor and Amanda Olsen contributed to this article.