Calling it one the most closely watched state senate races in New York State, East Hills resident Adam Haber officially announced his candidacy for the Seventh District last Thursday at an enthusiastic gathering at the VFW Hall in Albertson.
Before outlining his agenda, Haber briefly thanked his father, a former losing candidate for a school board seat as “[laying] the groundwork” for his desire to enter politics. Haber then listed four main planks to his candidacy.
The first was taxes as he noted that Nassau County remains one of the highest taxed counties in New York, “if not the country.”
Haber, who has served for several years on the Roslyn School Board, said that his time on that body makes him well prepared to confront any financial problems the state budget may have.
“The Roslyn School District was failing,” he said. “They were having budget increases while pails were in the hallways catching rainwater from the roofs.”
The district, he added, soon went from “worst to first.” After Haber and his colleagues spent a large amount of time studying the budget and its spending patterns, the school district, he said, was able to contain spending, initiate new programs, while keeping the tax rate as one of the lowest on Nassau County.
While on the subject, Haber declared education to be another key plank to his platform. Although public schools on the North Shore are generally high performing, Haber said that there were schools in the Seventh District that need help. Later, on the topic of the moment, the Common Core curriculum, Haber said he could not support it “as it stands now.” Still, he believes that basic level standards can be a positive good.
Jobs and the economy, Haber continued, was the third plank of his platform.
He painted a dire comparison between Nassau County and a place “eight miles up the road,” in this case, New York City. Haber said that the city was in a boom period, while Nassau County continues to lose young people.
“Young people must move back [to Long Island] or we’re dying on the vine,” he said.
Haber noted his own business experiences, namely creating up to 100 jobs through his two restaurants.
Finally, Haber said he would fight in Albany for passage of the Women’s Equality Act, an issue that he said he “[cares] passionately about.”
For their part, the offices of Senator Martins issued their own release on the occasion of Haber’s announcement.
“Senator Martins promised to fight for our communities and get our state headed back in the right direction, and that’s exactly what he’s done,” the statement said. “He cut taxes for millions of middle class families, delivered a property tax cap, controlled state spending, and promoted economic development. He also secured additional state aid for our schools and local governments, fought for mandate relief, and stood up for our children by holding Albany accountable for the failed rollout of Common Core. That’s a record of proven leadership and proven results.”
Calling the battle for the Seventh District a “winnable race,” Haber ended his talk by calling on volunteers to help out his candidacy, joking that he was capable of writing “amazing” letters of recommendation for any interns who might work on his campaign. His campaign literature noted that both President Barack Obama and U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand both carried the Seventh District by large margins in 2012 and that Senator Martins had won re-election that year with 52 percent of the vote, while heavily outspending his opponent.
“I don’t need this job. I want this job,” he said in his closing remarks. “When I come home at the end of the day, I want my children to ask ‘What did you do today?’ ‘Did you help the community?’ Let’s go get ‘em.”
Haber acknowledged that he would be “putting up a few bucks” of his own money into the race. He said that he would spend the equivalent of a state senate salary of his own funds, while noting that the campaign has fundraisers lined up in the immediate future.
