Election 2024: Riverhead News-Review Endorsements

U.S. CONGRESS: JOHN AVLON

East End voters are fortunate to have two strong and qualified candidates vying to represent them in the U.S. House of Representatives for the next two years. Democrat John Avlon, a journalist, author and presidential historian, making his first run for public office, is challenging Republican incumbent Rep. Nick LaLota.

Mr. LaLota has established his bona fides when it comes to protecting the natural environment of the East End. He introduced a bill in 2023 to designate Plum Island as a National Monument to protect the federally owned property from future commercial development. He has been a vocal advocate for protecting Long Island Sound, securing some $40 million in federal funds to ensure the health of the vital waterway. He has also garnered $3 million in funding for the restoration of the Mitchell Park bulkhead in Greenport Harbor. He supports the expansion of H2B and H2A worker visa programs, which are vital to the area’s agricultural and hospitality industries. He has been criticized for his vocal support of the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, but has since said he will not vote for a national abortion ban. Mr. LaLota has been steadfast in his support of the legitimacy of the 2020 presidential election and has joined a bi-partisan group of fellow legislators in pledging to certify the results of this year’s vote. However he has an unfortunate tendency to show excess fealty to the Republican Party hierarchy. If elected — and the House of Representatives remains in Republican control — Mr. LaLota likely will continue to be part of a group of legislators who through 2023 had passed a historically low total of 27 bills, the fewest in almost 100 years. Can the U.S. afford two more years of a “do-nothing” Congress?

John Avlon has run a smart, informative and open campaign, emphasizing the nonpartisan, “common-sense” approach he would bring to Washington. He has stressed the need to “rebuild the middle” in terms of politics and the economy, to increase opportunity and break the cycle of hyper-partisanship that has all but crippled the legislative branch over the past several years. He recognizes and supports the need for comprehensive immigration reform and streamlining the process for adjudicating asylum seekers’ petitions. He supports preserving open space, while recognizing the need to find viable solutions to the region’s affordability crisis, and would seek, through tax breaks, to motivate homeowners and small businesses to take steps to enhance coastal resiliency and combat climate change.

Mr. Avlon has left little doubt he would be a level-headed and effective public servant, and has The Suffolk Times’ endorsement to represent District 1 in Congress.

STATE SENATE: ANTHONY PALUMBO

Two able politicians are also vying to represent the North Fork in the New York State Senate: Republican Sen. Anthony Palumbo is seeking reelection and Democrat Sarah Anker is challenging him for the seat.

Long before Ms. Anker was elected to public office, she was a community activist in her hometown of Mt. Sinai, working to make a difference in the lives of her neighbors. Serving in the Suffolk County Legislature for more than a decade, she had previously worked in Brookhaven Town government to provide solar-powered electricity to 500,000 residents. A strong environmental advocate, she chaired the Coastal Erosion Advisory Board, a special task force created to protect and preserve the East End beaches.

Republican/Conservative Anthony Palumbo was elected in 2013 to the state Assembly, where he served until he was elected in 2020 to the seat long held by Republican state Sen. Ken LaValle.

Mr. Palumbo has a strong environmental record, which is critical to the 1st Senate District. He voted for a bill intended to kick-start a kelp industry on the East End; voted to modify the Community Preservation Fund to allow up to 20% of funds collected to go toward clean water and open space preservation initiatives.

Mr. Palumbo was out in front on the vote for the Peconic Region Community Housing Fund bill, to raise money for affordable housing in four of the five East End towns, where housing is a crisis.

He has been an able successor to Mr. LaValle in his dedication to hearing the voices of his constituents and acting on their needs, as well as seeking bi-partisanship to get things done.

The Suffolk Times endorses Sen. Anthony Palumbo for another term in the New York State Senate.

STATE ASSEMBLY: JODI GIGLIO

With her current Assembly term ending in January, Ms. Giglio is running for reelection for a second time.

Before 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, she launched her campaign and won his former seat. She won her first reelection campaign in November 2022. Democratic challenger Tricia Chiaramonte of Manorville will be listed on the ballot, however the Suffolk County Democratic Committee confirmed that she is not running an active campaign.

Voters in Riverhead are quite familiar with Ms. Giglio after her long run as a Town Board member. She knows this area well, has long-standing relationships with local leaders and has proven to be a positive voice for its residents at the state level. She has consistently demonstrated a level-headed, practical approach to addressing solutions for pressing issues, including affordable housing, water quality and open space preservation.

Ms. Giglio has been a staunch advocate for school aid and voted in support of several education-related bills this year, including adding art and music programs to the curriculum for public school students and increasing the minimum Universal Pre-Kindergarten reimbursement rate from $5,400 to $6,400.

She rallied with other Republican legislators against state budget cuts to school aid this past year and advocated for a bill that would mandate the appointment of a school district and labor union representative to Industrial Development Agency boards across New York State. With her background as a builder, Ms. Giglio has a solid understanding of practical implications of many of the state’s more ambitious goals regarding clean energy and affordable housing mandates. We are confident she will continue to use that experience to the benefit of area residents. Despite running essentially unopposed this year, Ms. Giglio has done more than enough to once again earn the News-Review’s endorsement for reelection.

PROPOSITIONS: YES ON PROPOSITIONS 1 AND 2

Two propositions will be listed on the ballot this year. 

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 to include ethnicity, age, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, pregnancy and pregnancy outcomes. Supporting this measure will help ensure that all New Yorkers are equally protected from undue discrimination and remain free from restrictive legislation on what rightfully should remain personal life and health care decisions.

Proposition 2 seeks to extend and revise the drinking water protection program by creating a new water quality restoration fund by adding a 1/8% sales tax on retail purchases, with revenue to be used for clean water projects and modernizing sewer and septic systems. For too long, as dangerous pollutants have seeped into area waterways, too many residents have been exposed to substandard drinking water and regional aquatic life has been decimated. This is a small investment to help turn around a big problem