Your Voting Guide

New York State Senate District 5 Race
By Dave Gil de Rubio
dgilderubio@antonmediagroup.com

Communities represented in the 6th District include portions of the Town of Hempstead, including the villages of Hempstead and Garden City, and the hamlets of Levittown, East Meadow and stretches and parts of southern Oyster Bay, including the hamlets of Plainedge and Bethpage.

John Brooks (D)

If elected: My top three priorities are addressing the gun violence epidemic in this country by passing common-sense gun safety legislation, fighting to defend access to safe and legal reproductive healthcare and lowering property taxes on Long Island. I am a lifelong resident of Seaford and have advocated for Long Island’s unique interests in Albany since 2017.
I have a comprehensive plan to lower property taxes up to 20 to 30 percent for overburdened homeowners by reducing the reliance on property taxes to fund our public education system, as well as a bill to automatically grant senior homeowners a 30 percent cut in school taxes. I cosponsored the original Reproductive Health Act and further passed a package of bills to protect reproductive healthcare in response to the overturning of Roe v. Wade. I authored the law to ban guns that are manufactured to look like toys and have cosponsored numerous pieces of legislation to protect our children and communities from the scourge of gun violence and mass shootings that have become commonplace.
I will continue to stand up for the people of Long Island against any misguided plans that fail to take into account our distinctive regional differences and our contributions to New York State.

Bio: Since he was elected six years ago, Senator John Brooks has delivered for Long Island as a champion for our veterans, an advocate for vulnerable communities and a problem solver for complex issues that have impacted Long Island for years. With more than 150 bills passed in the Senate, he has found success in government by focusing on his roots as a public servant, leaving partisan politics out of the equation.
As chair of the Veterans, Homeland Security, and Military Affairs Committees, he has led efforts to improve veterans’ services, including the statewide expansion of the Joseph P. Dwyer Peer-to-Peer Veterans Counseling Program and the elevation of the Division of Veterans Services to a full-fledged cabinet-level department. He delivered on the community’s first responders’ 16-year effort to pass the EMS Cost Recovery Act, saving upwards of $100 million in taxes.
Senator Brooks has been a volunteer firefighter for 53 years and is ex-chief of the Seaford Fire Department. He previously served as vice president of the Seaford Board of Education, executive director of Risk Management for Nassau County and had a long career in the insurance industry. He is a veteran, a proud father and grandfather, and a lifelong Seaford resident.

Steven Rhoads (R)
Despite responding to a request for an Election Guide submission, as of press time, the Rhoads camp did not follow through.

New York State Assembly District 13 Candidates
By Jennifer corr
jcorr@antonnews.com

New York State Assembly District 13 covers Roslyn, Sea Cliff, Glen Cove, Bayville, Centre Island, Cove Neck, Laurel Hollow, Woodbury, Plainview, Syosset, Jericho, New Cassel and Westbury.

Ruka Anzai, R
(challenger)

Bio: My name is Ruka Anzai. I am a homeowner in Jericho with kids going to school in Nassau County, with a background in engineering working for the federal government as an IT professional. As your next Assemblywoman, I’ll vote to repeal the “Cashless bail” laws and keep thugs behind bars. My opponent Charles Lavine has sponsored and passed these laws so violent criminals are let free from police stations within hours of being arrested now in Nassau County. Charles Lavine also voted to erase the criminal record of those convicted of domestic violence and arson. These policies are slowly eroding our way of life on Long Island.

If elected: As your next Assemblywoman I will work to Make Property Tax Rebate Permanent, extend the gas tax holiday and fight to reverse the $1 Billion commuter tax (aka congestion pricing—soon roundtrip LIRR tickets to Manhattan will cost $34). I will support Assembly bills for government funding representing small businesses. I believe we will rebuild our communities to keep our Children safe at school and keep our towns and cities clean. I believe we all want Nassau County to be a safe community so all our kids can grow here and be a success in life, and we can work together to achieve this.

Assemblyman Charles Lavine, D (incumbent)

Bio: Lives in Glen Cove. Married to Ronnie, retired public school teacher and Planned Parenthood volunteer. Graduate University of Wisconsin and New York Law School. Public defender in New York City, practiced law in Queens and Manhattan. General counsel to North Country Reform Temple. Counsel to Glen Cove Industrial Development and Community Development Agencies. Planning board member. Served on City Council. As Assemblymember, served as Chair of committees on Ethics, Elections and Judiciary. Headed bipartisan task force that wrote the Speakers’ Policy on Sexual Harassment, Retaliation and Discrimination, a national model. President of New York Chapter of National Association of Jewish Legislators and member of its national board of directors. Author of early voting law and Scott J. Beigel Unfinished Receiver Act outlawing do it yourself “ghost guns.”

If elected: Will continue to work across political aisle to protect the lives and safety of New Yorkers. Our legislative focus must be on defending and protecting democracy, our environment, education, healthcare and growing our economy. Am proud to have helped bring record state spending back to our Long Island schools.

New York State Senate District 7 Candidates
By Amanda Olsen
aolsen@antonmediagroup.com

New York State Senate District 7 covers Albertson, Baxter Estates, Bellerose, Bellerose Terrace, Carle Place, East Hills, East Williston, Elmont, Floral Park, Flower Hill, Franklin Square, Garden City, Garden City Park, Glenwood Landing, Great Neck, Great Neck Estates, Great Neck Gardens, Great Neck Plaza, Greenvale, Harbor Hills,
Herricks, Hicksville, Kensington, Kings Point, Lake Success, Manhasset, Manhasset Hills, Manorhaven, Mineola, Munsey Park, New Cassel, New Hyde Park, North Hills, North New Hyde Park, Old Westbury, Plandome, Plandome Heights, Plandome Manor, Port Washington, Port Washington North, Roslyn, Roslyn Estates, Roslyn Harbor, Roslyn Heights, Russell Gardens, Saddle Rock, Saddle Rock Estates, Sands Point, Searingtown, South Floral Park, Stewart Manor, Thomaston, University Gardens, Westbury, and Williston Park.

Jack Martins, (R)
(challenger)

Whether you identify as a Republican, Democrat or Independent, we know that New York is headed in the wrong direction. We feel less safe in our own communities. With the ever-increasing cost of living, inflation, and taxes, we each feel less secure in our futures, for ourselves and our children. Small businesses are struggling with ever increasing costs and red tape. We need to repeal cashless bail, provide judges with discretion in sentencing criminals, support law enforcement, curb out of control state spending and regulations, and provide relief to middle class New Yorkers. We need to recognize and respect parental rights and take steps to ensure that state and local policies do not undermine those rights. We must also redouble efforts to protect our environment, protect our sole source aquifer, ensure clean drinking water, and commit to protecting and restoring coastal wetlands. Lastly, and importantly, we must work to restore civil discourse, understanding that government works best when we work together.
As a State Senator, I passed six on-time budgets with increases capped at 2 percent; enacted the state’s first property tax cap; provided funding for local communities, villages, and school districts; and enacted legislation protecting Long Island’s sole source aquifer.

Ann Kaplan, (D)
Incumbent

As a second-term State Senator, I’m proud to have written and passed nation-leading legislation that makes New York a safe haven for reproductive rights for women from anti-choice states, that bans dangerous and untraceable ghost guns from our community, and that has permanently capped property taxes for my constituents. I will continue to champion women’s reproductive rights, common-sense gun safety legislation, and middle class tax relief.
Further, public safety has always been a top priority for me. I’ve worked to provide record-breaking funding for law enforcement and public safety improvements. I’ve delivered common-sense fixes to bail reform, closed the repeat offender loophole and gave judges more discretion to keep our community safe. I’ve introduced legislation to give $500 million in grants to our police, to make sure our law enforcement officials have the tools and resources they need to keep our community safe.
Finally, I’ll continue to advocate for the state to pick up a greater responsibility for issues like school funding and road repaving to lower property taxes for Long Islanders. I have a proven track record of delivering on the issues that matter most to our community and look forward to continuing to deliver for Long Island families.

New York State Assembly District 19 Candidates
by Janet Burns
jburns@antonnews.com

Incumbent Ed Ra (R) and challenger Sanjeev Jindal (D) are vying for a seat that includes the Towns of Hempstead, North Hempstead, and Oyster Bay, and the Villages of Brookville, East Hills, East Williston, Floral Park, Garden City, Hempstead, Mineola, New Hyde Park, Old Brookville, Old Westbury, Roslyn Harbor, Stewart Manor, Upper Brookville, Westbury, and Williston Park, as well as Albertson, Carle Place, East Meadow, Franklin Square, Garden City Park, Garden City South, Glen Head, Glenwood Landing, Greenvale, Herricks, North New Hyde Park, Roslyn Heights, Uniondale, and West Hempstead.

Ed Ra, (R)

Bio: Long Island native Ed Ra was first elected to the New York State Assembly in 2010. Assemblyman Ra currently serves as Ranking Minority Member of the Assembly Ways and Means Committee. Ra’s legislative priorities include emphasizing transparency and accountability in the state budget process, rooting out public corruption and promoting public safety. He graduated from Loyola College in Maryland in 2004 with a B.A. in Computer Science. He received his J.D. from St. John’s University School of Law in 2007 and his LL.M. in Intellectual Property Law from Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law in 2008. Ra is admitted to practice law in New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania. Assemblyman Ra is a resident of Garden City South, where he lives with his wife, Laura and their shelter dog, Carter.

If elected: In my previous runs for the Assembly I’ve never seen such a concern with crime from Nassau County voters. We’ve seen the impact of a revolving door criminal justice system caused by bills passed in Albany like cashless bail, discovery reform, Raise the Age and Less is More as well as District Attorneys deciding not to prosecute certain crimes. I believe this has emboldened criminals who see no immediate consequences for their actions. We need to restore common sense and balance by giving judges discretion to consider dangerousness and criminal history like other states. We also need to help New Yorkers struggling with the impacts of record inflation that is making everything they need on a day-to-day basis cost more. Our Budget has ballooned to $220 billion dollars and this is not sustainable. We’ve provided additional resources in many areas in response to the pandemic utilizing temporary federal funding but cannot count on that funding going forward. We have begun to build our reserve funds but need to keep the short and long term financial outlook in mind as we approach the next state budget.

Sanjeev Jindal, (D)

Bio: Sanjeev is trained as an engineer and has a degree in Town and City Planning. Sanjeev arrived in the United States two decades with nothing in his pockets but the American Dream. He worked in a liquor store and drove a cab as he settled into his new country. After saving some money, he started his own business. Over time, Sanjeev’s business became successful. He met his wife and started a family; his parents then joined him. Today, Sanjeev is living his American Dream. His wife is a Registered Nurse at the Queens Hospital Center. His eldest son is a freshman at the State University of New York at Binghamton. His two other children attend school in the Herricks School District. His parents live with him in a three-generation home. Over the years, Sanjeev has become a community leader and a voice for families on Long Island. Now he wants to give back to our Long Island community by ensuring that all families can achieve their American Dream.
If elected: The most pressing issues in our district are ensuring that Republicans don’t take away women’s right to make their own health decisions including access to abortion, keeping our streets safe, fully funding education, enacting reasonable gun safety laws, ensuring that seniors get the services they deserve, stopping the ill-conceived congestion pricing plan and lowering property taxes. Once elected, I will work with the majority in the Assembly to ensure that Republicans don’t strip away women’s right to choose. Republicans all across our nation are trying to take away women’s fundamental rights to make their own healthcare decisions. I will also fight to keep our quality of life high on Long Island. Children should be able to live in the communities they grew up in and seniors should not be forced out of homes they’ve lived in for decades. People should be able to feel safe in their community. Children should have access to great educations. The people of the 19th Assembly deserve an Assemblyman who is responsive and available to them.

 

New York State Assembly District 15 Candidates

By Julie Prisco
jprisco@antonmediagroup.com

Amanda Field (D) and Jake Blumencranz (R) are running in the general election for New York State Assembly District 15. NYS Assembly District 15 covers Locust Valley, Glen Head, Oyster Bay, Syosset and parts of Woodbury and Plainview.
Field has served as the Commissioner of the Plainview Water District and has held positions on the boards of Nassau Suffolk Water Commissioners’ Association, the Long Island Water Conference and New York Clean Water Coalition. Amanda’s bi-partisan approach has led to her work with local, County, and State officials to secure grants and pass critical legislation in Albany.
Blumencranz earned a Master of Science in Regional Urban Planning and Economic Development at The London School of Economics and a dual Bachelor of Arts degree in Public Policy and Religious Studies from Rice University. He interned at Fox News and in the financial sector before joining his family’s insurance business. As a private sector business executive with extensive education in economics, Blumencranz’s real-world experience will benefit taxpayers.

Jake Blumencranz (Republican)

As a proud advisory board member of the Nassau County Police Foundation, I’ll be a public safety champion in Albany and work with police, not against them, to keep our communities safe. I’ll also vote to repeal dangerous bail laws that free violent thugs from jail and return greater discretion to judges when it comes to setting bail. Because there’s nothing more important than the future of our children, I’ll work to improve educational opportunities for all students, including expanding alternative career pathways like trade schools and BOCES programs, while investing in mental health programs.
Finally, to restore Long Island as a place where young people want to return to, call home, and raise their families, I’ll be the loudest advocate for environmental sustainability, fighting climate change, and protecting our drinking water.

If elected: I’m running for the State Assembly to lead Long Island into a safer, more affordable future. With inflation, high taxes and rising gas prices hurting Long Islanders, I have a four-point plan to permanently cut gas taxes, increase property tax breaks for homeowners, cut income taxes for middle class families, and eliminate waste, fraud and abuse within the state budget.

—Submitted by Jake Blumencranz

Amanda Field (Democrat)

If elected: Below are the most pressing issues Field plans to focus on.
Safety: Insuring practical gun laws in NYS, addressing the root causes of crime and addressing bail reform to provide more judicial discretion in setting bail. I will sponsor legislation that creates a coalition of police, educators and social services and targets mental illness and other root causes of crime.
Taxes: Reduce school taxes by providing NYS subsidies for school districts where more than 50 percent of the total school tax are paid by homeowners. Provide “circuit-breakers” which limit taxes on low income seniors and young adults.Choice: Protect women’s right to choose, moving to codify safe, legal abortions into the NYS Constitution. Bans on abortion do not stop abortion, they only stop safe abortions.
Support Police: Increase funding, universal training, and support police to face challenges created by today’s changing climate.
Education: Expanding universal support for students and teachers in all schools and programs to assist children of varying needs and abilities.
Climate: Support protections to combat climate change and a practical approach to clean energy and clean water.
Mental Health Services: Increased access & holistic support for mental health & wellness for all ages, starting with universal resources and training for all public schools, increased incentives for higher education and training in the field of mental health and wellness.
—Submitted by Amanda Field