Newsday Opinion urges 'Yes' vote on Suffolk County ballot initiative

Just last week, the state's highest court upheld a 2023 law mandating even-year elections for county and town offices. The premise is that turnout in local races will increase when bigger races for the presidency, Congress and governorship are at the top of the ticket.

One downside is the transition phase, as the law forces a bizarre outcome for this year's Suffolk County legislative races — the last to be held in an odd year.

This year's winners would normally have two-year terms, but instead they face reelection next year as the even-year law takes effect. Their seats would open up again in 2028.

Thus, voters and candidates face an unheard-of three elections in four years for the 18 members of Suffolk's legislature. Who needs that?

Suffolk residents can avert this mess by voting "yes" on Proposal Two.

This county charter amendment would change the terms of legislators from two to four years. If it is approved, those elected next month would get to serve a three-year term beginning in January. Their seats would next come open in 2028 to begin the cycle of four-year terms.

Let's acknowledge that four-year terms for legislators were rejected at the polls in 2020 in Suffolk County by a lopsided margin of 70%-30%. The chief argument against longer terms has always been that they would loosen control of a district's voters over their representatives. Five years ago, we wrote that a two-year term gives the public a way to more frequently register disapproval if dissatisfied with county government.

Circumstances have changed and the context is different, with even-years voting about to take effect.

Elected officials are now showing unprecedented consensus in favor of four-year terms. The county’s Democratic and Republican legislators voted — unanimously — in June to put this proposal on the ballot and GOP County Executive Edward P. Romaine signed it onto the fall ballot.

The chief argument in favor of longer tenure has always been that it takes time for lawmakers to grapple with issues and projects requiring granular knowledge, such as infrastructure funding. That's worth considering too.

More immediately, ballots in even-numbered years will be jam-packed with federal, state and local races, in a daunting array of choices for voters in which local elections may well be eclipsed.

The prospect of relieving those ballots of frequent legislative races now becomes a positive. More often than not, legislative incumbents are reelected.

Suffolk's 12-year limit on lawmakers would remain intact under this charter amendment. How the system may be adjusted for an official who serves the next 11 years' worth of three elected terms may need to be better clarified after the proposal becomes law. Either way, however, it's not a deal-breaker.

Newsday Opinion urges a "Yes" vote.