Why I am running.
As the Legislature’s minority leader, I am passionate about public service, committed to fulfilling the Legislature’s oversight role over the Executive branch, and delivering infrastructure improvements not just for the 11th District, but every community across Nassau County in an equitable and responsive manner.
I am eager to continue my advocacy for the communities I am so blessed to serve, and I have several key initiatives that I have embarked upon that I am committed to seeing through to completion – chief among them accelerating the delivery of opioid lawsuit settlement funds to agencies providing lifesaving recovery and treatment services.
Top 3 issues
- I will focus on reducing wasteful spending by auditing county contracts.
- I am committed to public safety and will continue to fight for investments in police and additional patrols.
- I will continue working to lower the cost of living by opposing property tax increases, pushing to cut fees, and working with local leaders to lower water and sewer bills.
Biography
Delia DeRiggi-Whitton, the minority leader of the Nassau County Legislature since 2024, is completing her seventh term on the Nassau County Legislature. She represents the 11th Legislative District, which encompasses Port Washington, Glen Cove and the Villages of Baxter Estates, Manorhaven, Port Washington North, Sands Point, Glen Head, Glenwood Landing and Sea Cliff.
During two decades in public service, DeRiggi-Whitton has distinguished herself as a dedicated fiscal watchdog who prioritizes public health and safety, environmental preservation and governmental transparency.
DeRiggi-Whitton championed initiatives to deliver grants for homeowners to upgrade aging septic systems; secured millions to expand Sea Cliff’s sanitary sewer infrastructure, marshaled essential resources to clean up and reopen Crescent Beach in Glen Cove, and spearheaded bipartisan legislation banning of fracking water snow melt in Nassau County.
Deeply concerned about protecting our community from drugs and addiction, DeRiggi-Whitton was one of the first elected officials to bring Narcan training to Nassau County, and is continuing to push the Blakeman administration to greatly expedite the delivery of nearly $100 million in opioid settlement funds to agencies on the front lines of addressing the opioid crisis.
On both the Glen Cove City Council and now the Legislature, DeRiggi-Whitton has always worked to ensure that Nassau County’s first responders have the resources they need to serve the community.
She has obtained substantial funding for local first responder agencies to purchase essential safety equipment, secured over $1.3 million in grants for first responders that had been held up by the Blakeman administration, and is leading the minority caucus in its fight to shut down Bruce Blakeman’s illegal and dangerously misguided armed militia.
Before being elected to the Nassau County Legislature, DeRiggi-Whitton served two terms as a member of the Glen Cove City Council and was the council’s liaison to the city’s Senior Center, where she also served on its Advisory Board.
Throughout her adult life, DeRiggi-Whitton has been deeply involved in various health and human services initiatives. She helped to launch Long Island’s U.S. Marine Corps Toys for Tots, which later grew to become the largest one-day toy collection event in the United States.
DeRiggi-Whitton also serves as a member and on the board of directors of the Diabetes Research Institute Foundation (DRI), where she has helped to raise well over $1 million in the serach for a cure. Delia’s charitable and community organization involvement includes her membership in the Sons and Daughters of Italy and Kiwanis International.
DeRiggi-Whitton earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Hofstra University. She lives in Glen Cove with her husband Richard Valicenti and has three daughters and a stepson.
DeRiggi-Whitton is the daughter of former Glen Cove Mayor Donald DeRiggi and noted local historian Dr. Mildred DeRiggi, who was an “answer writer” for “Jeopardy!” during its original 1960s New York City run.
