Rosenberg unseats incumbent LaVita in special election

Former Old Field Village trustee Ted M. Rosenberg has unseated Justice Ron LaVita in a special election after the candidates finished in a tie last month.

Rosenberg defeated LaVita, 189-146, in voting on Tuesday, village officials said.

Rosenberg said he expects to be sworn in Tuesday.

Incumbent LaVita of the Justice Party and challenger Rosenberg of the Lighthouse Party had finished in a 114-114 tie during village elections on March 20, necessitating the runoff to determine a winner.

The campaign was marked by accusations that the incumbent lived in his home without a certificate of occupancy, and that the challenger lacked the proper temperament to be a judge.

Village justices serve four-year terms and are not paid. Old Field, on the North Shore of Brookhaven Town, has about 920 residents, according to the 2010 U.S. Census.

Rosenberg, 64, the village’s associate justice and a partner with Rosenberg & Gluck in Holtsville, said he was “pleasantly surprised” by his victory and gratified by the turnout: 335 people voted on Tuesday, compared with 228 in last month’s election, which also chose a mayor and two trustees.

“There was obviously a lot of interest,” Rosenberg said in an interview Wednesday. “I think it’s fair to say that both myself and Mr. LaVita took this vote very seriously and we both worked very hard to get every last vote.”

LaVita, 60, a lawyer in private practice, is completing his fifth term as justice.

In an email, LaVita said he was upset by Rosenberg’s accusations during the campaign that he had failed to leave his home in 2002 when he learned that the house didn’t have a certificate of occupancy. LaVita had said he paid permit fees last year and was in compliance with village requirements.

“I am disappointed with the results of the election, but I am also disappointed and do not think I deserve what in my opinion were the repeated and redundant scurrilous attacks and rhetoric made against me,” LaVita wrote. “This is not Washington politics and the ‘ends do not always justify the means.’ ”

LaVita, in a mailing he sent to village residents last month, questioned Rosenberg’s suitability for the job. He said Rosenberg had misused his role as associate justice by hosting a political fundraiser at his home and seeking favors. Rosenberg denied those allegations.

By Carl MacGowan

carl.macgowan@newsday.comCarlMacGowan

Carl MacGowan is a Long Island native who covers Brookhaven Town after having previously covered Smithtown, Suffolk County courts and numerous spot news and feature stories over his 20-plus year career at Newsday.