Kevin M. Thomas, 6th Senate District 

Kevin Thomas  

Democratic

BACKGROUND: Thomas, 33, of Levittown, is a lawyer who specializes in legal services for low-income people. He is running on the Democratic, Working Families and Women's Equality Party lines. Thomas received a bachelor’s degree from St. John’s University in Queens in 2006 and a juris doctorate from Cooley Law School at Western Michigan University in 2010. An Indian-American, Thomas emigrated to the United States when he was 10 years old, first living in Jamaica, Queens, and then Elmont. He and his wife, Rincy, a pharmacist, are expecting their first child in December.

ISSUES: Thomas said he is running to "turn the state Senate blue and be an alternative to Trump's America." If elected, he would immediately work to ensure the passage of the Reproductive Health Act, which aligns New York State law with protections guaranteed under the U.S. Constitution. The bill, which passed in the state Assembly, removes abortion from the Penal Code and recognizes it as a lawful medical procedure. He said he would also work to find a solution to the opioid epidemic on Long Island and across the state. Thomas pledged to hold pharmaceutical companies responsible and “curb the number of prescriptions going out.” He would also advocate for better funding for recovery center and social service programs for addicts, he said. He also vowed to fully implement the New York Court of Appeals ruling in regard to the Campaign for Fiscal Equity and ensure that public schools are receiving all of the funding from the state that they are owed.

By Candice Ferrette

candice.ferrette@newsday.comcandiceferrette

Candice Ferrette covers Nassau County government and politics on Long Island. She has been a reporter at Newsday since 2011.