LI GOP leaders attend Smithtown fundraiser

Smithtown Councilman Robert Creighton, who is mulling a run for town supervisor, drew a packed house of more than 400 people to a fundraiser last week.

The $50-a-head event at Watermill Caterers drew guests including John Jay LaValle, Suffolk Republican chairman; Smithtown GOP leader Bill Ellis; and Republican Brookhaven Supervisor Edward Romaine. Smithtown Supervisor Patrick Vecchio, a Republican who has been in office 35 years, was invited but did not attend.

Creighton, 75, switched from the Conservative to the Republican Party in October to give himself "more maneuvering room," and said he would consider a race if Vecchio decides not to run. However Creighton's party switch also opens the door to the possibility of running a GOP primary against Vecchio, if necessary. -- Rick Brand