SUFFOLK CLOSEUP : The Race To Replace Lee Zeldin

SUFFOLK CLOSEUP

By Karl Grossman 

Suffolk County Legislator Bridget Fleming has announced her seeking to be the Democratic candidate for the U.S. House of Representatives in the lst Congressional District in next year’s election—and now the field has more declared and possible entries.

The incumbent, Republican Lee Zeldin, wants to run for New York governor in 2022.

On the GOP side, there’s a potential nominee to run in Mr. Zeldin’s stead with a name well-known in this area: LaValle. 

Kevin LaValle, a Brookhaven Town councilman from Selden, is a cousin of Kenneth LaValle, a state senator from Suffolk from 1977 until last year when he retired. Kenneth LaValle, of Port Jefferson, a teacher and school administrator before running for the State Senate, was a big vote-getter during his tenure. 

Kevin LaValle is also the brother of John Jay LaValle, a Brookhaven Town councilman from 1996 to 2000 when he was elected town supervisor. John LaValle departed town government in 2005 and in 2009 became Suffolk Republican leader for a decade.

Could the LaValle name and Kevin LaValle being from Brookhaven Town provide him with an advantage in a lst C.D. contest?  Nearly 500,000 residents of the lst C.D., which has a total population of somewhat over 700,000, live in Brookhaven Town.

Another Brookhaven Town Republican councilman seriously considering the race is Neil Foley of Blue Point. “The possibility is real,” he said. “I’ve been blessed with people coming up to me, constituents, family members, encouraging me to run. I’m very interested in running.”

Mr. Foley said his emphasis—as a councilman since 2014—is “listening to the district. We’re elected to be the voice of our district. I’m a big listener.” He describes himself as “my own type of Republican.”

In addition to being a town councilman, he is vice president of New York Cancer & Blood Specialists based in Port Jefferson Station. He sees health issues as highly important. “We need to get people proper health care.”

Kevin LaValle commented, also in an interview last week: “I’ve been talking to friends, family and supporters. I certainly have an interest. I’m reaching out to appropriate people trying to make the most informed decision. This is a huge decision.”

He said Mr. Zeldin, from Shirley, also in Brookhaven Town, “has set a roadmap for the district” in his four House terms. As to issues, Mr. LaValle said “we have to worry about the environment on the East End; the business community that has been so significantly affected by the [COVID-19] shutdown, and now we are starting to open back up and we have to get business owners thriving again; and we are seeing a rise in crime and we have to make sure our police departments have the necessary tools. These are a few issues.”

In addition to being a councilman, Mr. LaValle is a mortgage loan originator at Lynx Mortgage Bank. “I like helping first-time homebuyers,” he says.

Beyond populous Brookhaven Town, a minor portion of the lst C.D. includes all five East End towns—Southampton, Riverhead, East Hampton, Southold and Shelter Island—most of Smithtown, and a sliver of Islip. Legislator Fleming resides in Noyac in Southampton Town. Part of her county legislative district of Southampton, East Hampton and Shelter Island extends into southeastern Brookhaven. 

She seems highly likely to get the Democratic Party’s designation. She announced her run for the lst C.D. seat at the start of last month flanked by a group that included Suffolk Democratic leader Rich Schaffer; the presiding officer of the Suffolk Legislature Rob Calarco; and town Democratic chairs. Ms. Fleming would be the first woman to represent Suffolk County in the U.S. House of Representatives. She previously was a member of the Southampton Town Board and, in Manhattan, an assistant DA.

Her Democratic competition: two men in uphill tries. 

John Atkinson of Farmingville is described on his campaign website as a “progressive Democrat” who “has refused to take any campaign donations from corporations or political action committees.” He states: “Our country has many problems, and our entrusted elected officials in Washington represent themselves and their big money, corporate donors instead of representing us…If I am elected to Congress, I vow to vigorously fight to take on the corruption that has entrenched D.C. for far too long within the governing process and restore the power back to you.” 

Austin Smith is a bankruptcy attorney with a practice in Manhattan that specializes in assisting with student loan forgiveness. He has a bipartisan history having started in politics as a “full-time” fundraiser for the late GOP Senator John McCain and working in Hillary Clinton’s 2016 presidential campaign “contributing ideas about addressing student debt,” relates Yahoo Finance. 

Karl Grossman is a veteran investigative reporter and columnist, the winner of numerous awards for his work and a member of the L.I. Journalism Hall of Fame. He is a professor of journalism at SUNY/College at Old Westbury and the author of six books.