Who we're endorsing: For Nassau County Executive
Endorsements are a tradition at Newsday that date to our founding in 1940 (here’s a look at all the presidential endorsements the board has made since then), and it’s the busiest part of our year. Again this year, we are releasing the endorsements to your inbox before they are published in print.
Due to the ongoing pandemic, Long Island candidates did not come to our office for in-person meetings. Instead, the board interviewed candidates by Zoom.
The race: Nassau County Executive
Criminal justice reform is shaping up to be a key issue in the race for Nassau County executive between Republican Bruce Blakeman, left, and Democratic incumbent Laura Curran. Credit: Yeong-Ung Yang
Republican Bruce Blakeman vs. Democrat Laura Curran (incumbent)
Curran is the first woman and third Democrat ever to hold the position, defeating Jack Martins back in 2017. Blakeman is a Town of Hempstead councilman who was the first presiding officer of the Nassau County Legislature in 1996, after the county abandoned the former Board of Supervisors structure. The winner will serve a four-year term.
Our pick
Curran inherited a county government rightfully distrusted by residents and battered first by accusations of corruption, then by convictions. Curran’s term hasn’t been perfect, and we have been very critical of some of her decisions.
Her assessment plan, based on valuing properties quickly and accurately and smoothing the bills into fairness over five years, has been bedeviled by controversy and some missteps, but Curran’s fix is a gutsier and more comprehensive one than anyone else had suggested.
She also has wrestled budgets into balance, even before COVID-19 brought massive management challenges and a big pot of federal bailout money.
Blakeman does not offer solutions, but promises to look for solutions, saying he’ll get together the stakeholders and set the best minds he can find to working on every problem the county faces.
He is smart, experienced, respected and successful, but his characterization of Curran's actions as "raising school taxes" is flatly untrue. Plus he offers no blueprint of his own on how to fix the system, and lacks specifics across most issues despite being a perennial political player here.
Newsday endorses Curran. Here's why Nassau is better off with Curran at the helm -- and why Blakeman is not prepared to take on the challenge of leading the county.
Election reads and resources
— Have questions about voting this year? Email thepoint@newsday.com and we'll get you answers.
—There are five proposed amendments to the state constitution on the November ballot. Learn more about them and our takes on their propositions regarding voting, redistricting, the environment and more here.
— We have already endorsed for Suffolk County Sheriff, Town of North Hempstead Supervisor, and Town of Riverhead Supervisor, click the links to see who we chose.
Follow @NewsdayOpinion on Twitter and on Instagram to see more from the candidates. Stay tuned for our next special edition newsletter next week.
Endorsements are determined solely by the Newsday editorial board, a team of opinion journalists focused on issues of public policy and governance. Newsday’s news division has no role in this process.
