Here's what we learned from Long Island's 2023 candidates

Election season is an exciting time of year, especially for the editorial board. It's a unique opportunity to meet candidates seeking to represent some of the 3 million people who call Long Island home. We get insights into overarching topics like the opioid crisis, water quality, and the cost and shortage of housing, and specific trouble spots like a local bus stop shelter. While the board focuses on more regional issues during much of the year, candidates tell us where stop signs are needed, which storm drains are overflowing, and how individual constituents are having trouble making ends meet.

This year, we evaluated 47 races and interviewed 81 candidates vying for Suffolk County executive, town supervisor and county legislator. Some presented new solutions to old problems, others stuck to familiar refrains. Some literally get their hands dirty when creeks need cleanups, others know every traffic intersection. Some candidates have decades of experience; others are new to politics.

With few exceptions, those hoping to represent their fellow Long Islanders are thoughtful about the region's pressing challenges and dedicated to making their neighbors' lives better.

A DIVERSE COLLECTION

Promising newcomers offer increasing diversity that reflects recent immigration patterns. They bring fresh energy, new ideas, and different assumptions about what is possible. With candidates from China, India, Pakistan, Ethiopia and Central America, including some first-generation Americans who graduated from Long Island schools, gracing this year's ballots, more voters can choose representatives who look like them. Many candidates speak of having sought some version of the American dream and want to give others the same opportunity.

SAFETY, AFFORDABILITY

The first issue mentioned by many candidates was public safety, even as they admitted the Island and their districts are generally "safe." They noted residents' perception that crime — particularly property crime like stolen catalytic converters or convenience store thefts that result in items stashed behind locks — remains a key concern while also pointing to dangerous roads and the desire for more traffic safety enforcement. Often, regardless of party they advocated for more police officers — no matter the cost. Others supported raising public sector salaries across the board to keep and attract workers. 

But they expounded more on the high cost of living. Candidates said affordability is one word they hear most often campaigning door-to-door, but they also know effective solutions are elusive. After all, they have no influence on big cost drivers like school taxes and can do little about inflationary concerns like food and gas. But most have plenty to say about the biggest expense on Long Island — housing. 

NO MORE DEBATE

A few years ago, there were extensive debates over the need for more housing. Now, candidates in both parties recognize the Island's dire housing crisis must be addressed.
The question now is how.

Disagreements remain. Many candidates say they'd welcome additional housing near train stations or on plots of vacant or underused land. Some continue to reject new development in their districts. Most, however, now speak knowledgeably about sewers, a previously unsexy topic considered the key to downtown and affordable housing development.

Similarly, there is no longer dispute about the dangerous threat of climate change. Candidates are calling for infrastructure improvements to tackle expensive projects that mitigate flooding. Many are working with communities to address rising sea levels, while putting off taking stands on more difficult decisions such as whether to retreat from the shoreline.

Overall, environmental problems are near the top of their issue lists, reflecting polling showing it is of great concern.

THINKING … REGIONALLY? 

Perhaps nothing surprised us more than the number of candidates, who typically focus on hyperlocal issues, embracing regional approaches to complex problems. That was particularly true with regard to the impending closure of the Brookhaven landfill and the garbage crisis that will follow. Thinking regionally has never been an Island staple, but the trash conundrum might force that connectivity.

But will that open the door for regionwide work on other issues?

HOW THEY GOVERN

Still, for many legislative candidates, their district takes priority. That includes helping constituents navigate the maze of local, state and federal bureaucracies to get needs addressed. Often, candidates related personal experiences with friends, family or neighbors to illustrate why an issue resonated with them, especially on topics like the opioid epidemic.

As for their county work, surprisingly few legislative candidates expressed the view that they are part of a coequal branch of government that should demand oversight and accountability from the county executive.

BUILDING SUPPORT

Unlike years past, many candidates were unusually supportive of larger development plans, from Midway Crossing in Ronkonkoma to the casino resort proposal at the Nassau Hub. Instead of responding with skepticism or outright rejection, more candidates seem more open to the potential for big proposals to deliver an economic shot in the arm.

Of course, it wouldn't be a Long Island election season if there wasn't plenty of fodder for discussion and debate. But if one thing was clear through our seven weeks of interviews, it's that for all of Long Island's candidates, and for all of us, there's always something to learn.