Longtime senator banks on his record against opponent

After 38 years in office, State Sen. Owen Johnson (R-West Babylon) thinks his constituents have a pretty good idea of what he can do for them.

"I can't walk down the street without somebody saying 'Thanks for what you did,' " said Johnson, 81. "Everybody knows me by now, they know what I've done over the many years I've been here."

Republican candidate Johnson, who was first elected in 1972, is seeking his 20th term in office representing the Fourth Senate District. The district extends east from Amityville to Bohemia and south from Wheatley Heights to the Fire Island community of Seaview. As of April, the district has 192,819 registered voters. Of those, 67,891 are Democrats, 64,566 Republicans, 7,143 Independence Party members, 4,141 Conservative Party members and 839 Working Families Party members, with 338 registered to other parties. There are 47,901 voters in the district not registered with any party.

Johnson is running against Democrat Maeghan Lollo, 33, an attorney from West Babylon.

Johnson grew up attending West Babylon schools, and after being honorably discharged from the U.S. Marine Corps, earned a bachelor's degree in history and political science from Hofstra University.

Johnson, who also is on the Conservative and Independence lines, said the foremost issue facing elected officials is working to get spending under control and get the state out of its economic depression. "Everyone should cut down on the spending and get within the spending limitations of the taxpayers," he said. "We're spending money we don't have."

Democrats to blame

Johnson blamed the Democratic takeover of the Senate for recent overspending. "When we had a couple of extra votes there we could stop stupid things and maybe try to advance some things beneficial to our constituents," he said. But New York City's interests have taken over, he said, and school aid and other money go primarily to them now.

Johnson, who according to data from the state board of elections has a campaign balance of $23,699.82, said he wants restoration of the Empire Zones program and also more tax credits for businesses who are hiring. Johnson said he is concerned about people losing their jobs and leaving the state and wants New York to become more business friendly.

For his accomplishments in office, Johnson pointed to sponsoring a bill to ban all commercial fishing for striped bass, which he said led to their resurgence off Long Island waters. He said he also sponsored a bill requiring teens to get 30 hours of supervised driving experience before getting their junior license. He said he has been active in environmental conservation issues, pushing for tax credits for solar panel installation and helping establish Brentwood State Park.

Good at juggling jobs

Johnson's opponent, Maeghan Lollo, is currently raising twin toddlers while working as a part-time attorney for the Town of Islip and running her own law practice in Babylon village. Taking on the State Senate would just be yet another ball up in the air, she said. "I'm good at juggling jobs and wearing different hats," she said with a laugh.

Lollo grew up in West Babylon and graduated from West Babylon High School. She received a bachelor of arts degree in political science and public policy administration from SUNY Oswego and a law degree from Touro law school. She practices law under her maiden name, O'Keefe, and specializes in elder law.

Lollo said the reason she's running is that it's time for a change in Albany. "When you can't rely on your own government to function, to pass a budget, to do things that really are the basic job requirements of elected officials . . . it's time for change," Lollo said, adding that she's ready for the challenge. "I'm an honest person, I'm a hardworking person, and, especially if I have the backing of my constituents behind me who got me the job, then I take that job seriously."

Lollo, who said she has not raised any money for her campaign, said she is concerned about rising taxes and businesses leaving the state. She said she supports "anything that will bring people to New York, bring industry to New York bring jobs to New York and to stay in New York."

Lollo, who is married to a New York City police officer, said it's a struggle for her family and many others on Long Island just to make ends meet. "New York is losing its most important constituents and that's people like me and my family," she said.

Education is also an important issue for Lollo and she said she would like to work toward "a true initiative to reform education" because "a lot of children are being failed on so many different levels."

But this subject, like most others, she said, begins with an Albany shake-up. "It's like peeling a banana, you just keep going and going and there's so many issues and it all goes back to Albany," she said. "That's where things start, even if it's just conversations."