Meet The Candidates For State Assembly

The candidates running in the 10th Assembly special election Janet Smitelli, left, and Steve Stern congratulate each other last Wednesday night following a debate at the South Huntington Public Library. (Long Islander News photo/Connor Beach)

By Connor Beach
cbeach@longislandergroup.com

In five days the state’s currently-vacant 10th Assembly District will have a new representative.

The district seat, formerly occupied by Huntington Supervisor Chad Lupinacci, is now eyed by Republican Janet Smitelli and Democrat Steve Stern.

The candidates met last Wednesday in Huntington Station during a forum hosted by the League of Women Voters of Huntington and the Huntington Township Chamber of Commerce.

Smitelli, who is also running on the Conservative line, is a Huntington resident and Mineola-based civil attorney. She ran in 2015 for Suffolk Legislature, but was defeated by then-incumbent Legislator Lou D’Amaro, a Democrat.

Stern, who is also running on the Independence, Reform, Women’s Equality and Working Families lines, lives in Dix Hills and is fresh off a six-term stint in the Suffolk Legislature. He’s also an elder law attorney based in Garden City.

At the meet the candidates forum, the candidates responded to written questions ranging in topic from tax reform to gun control, and much in between.

Stern said, if elected, his top priorities would be to protect taxpayers and the environment, and combat violent gangs and the opioid crisis.

Smitelli listed three priorities: “taxes, taxes, taxes.”

“Taxes are becoming overly burdensome,” Smitelli said. “New York is the worst state for state and local taxes.”

Smitelli, addressing the recent changes in the federal tax code, said the state must respond to changes made at the federal level.

Stern, meanwhile, said he would bring to the state his county-level experience of managing a budget during difficult financial times in order to help offset the challenges posed by the federal tax laws.

“I’ve had experience in challenging times reimagining the services we provide, cutting costs along the way and protecting our taxpayers,” Stern said.

Development within the Huntington area was also addressed several times.

Stern said some areas, especially those near transportation hubs, are appropriate for development, but added that the majority of the district is not.

Stern said, “90-95 percent of our area we can look at as off limits to huge development.”

Smitelli pointed to “new, shiny projects” that, she said, once completed are left vacant for extended periods of time. That’s “not what we need,” she said. “What we need is to fix our infrastructure and roads.”

On the issue of gun control and school safety, Smitelli said there “has to be some control.”

“Those who are mentally ill and have had adjudication and those who are perpetrators of domestic violence should not have the right to have guns,” Smitelli said.

Stern called the gun debate the “moral issue of our time.”

He added, “In the assembly I will be a strong proponent of expanded background checks, bans on assault weapons and high-capacity magazines.”

Candidates land local endorsements

Both candidates in the race for the state’s 10th Assembly District secured local endorsements ahead of Tuesday’s election.

Huntington Supervisor Chad Lupinacci and Huntington-area state representatives Senate Majority Leader John Flanagan (R-East Northport), Sen. Carl Marcellino (R-Syosset) and Assemblyman Andrew Raia (R-Northport) each endorsed Janet Smitelli, a Republican.

“I’ve known Janet for many years now, and she puts her heart and soul into everything she does… I have no doubt that she will be a valuable asset to her district in Albany,” Raia said.

Democrat Steve Stern said his list of endorsements includes groups like the Long Island Federation of Labor, New York State Teachers, Suffolk County Municipal Employees Association, the National Organization of Women and Moms Demand Action.

“These are the organizations that represent so much of our public life and are my neighbors,” Stern said.

Huntington Democratic Committee Chairwoman Mary Collins said Stern “is a superb legislator” who is “always trying to help his constituents.”

About the district

The state’s 10th Assembly District has long been represented by a Republican.

Current Huntington Supervisor Chad Lupinacci was the last to occupy the seat; he vacated it earlier this year when he made the transition to the new post.

Prior to Lupinacci, Republicans James Conte and Toni Rettaliata held the seat. It’s been represented by a Republican since 1983.

The district encompasses much of the western portion of the Town of Huntington, topping out up north in Lloyd Harbor and running south from Cold Spring Harbor along the Nassau border to Melville and parts of East Farmingdale. To the east, the district spans portions of Dix Hills, Elwood and Greenlawn.

Editor's note: Information regarding the boundaries of the 10th Assembly District was corrected at 12:05 a.m., April 25.