Did Martins try to steal Kaplan's NYC PBA endorsement?

Daily Point

Endorsed by the PBA … then again, maybe not

When the New York City Police Benevolent Association’s local endorsements emerged this week, close watchers of the 7th Senate District race between Democratic incumbent Anna Kaplan and Republican challenger Jack Martins might have been puzzled.

Last week, Martins sent a campaign email that featured a graphic of a police shield, saying, “Jack Martins Backed by the Blue.”

“I was pleased this week to earn the support of two more major law enforcement groups,” the email said, highlighting the Shields, which he said was a group of active and retired officers from the area, and the NYC PBA.

“Taken together, my law enforcement endorsements represent nearly 200 police groups from every corner of the state. My opponent, who voted for cashless bail and for laws that handcuff police and prosecutors is not supported by the police.”

There was only one problem: The NYC PBA hadn’t endorsed in the race at all as of last week.

So, in this Wednesday’s campaign email, Martins included a line at the end that indicated the error: “Note: Last week’s message contained an error: NYC PBA has not endorsed a candidate in the 7th district.”

But by Thursday, the NYC PBA’s endorsements, paired with those of the state troopers PBA, were out.

And Kaplan, not Martins, received the nods.

“Senator Kaplan has committed to supporting police officers as workers and to opposing many of the radical proposals that make our jobs more difficult and our neighborhoods less safe,” PBA president Patrick Lynch said in a statement.

Kaplan was the sole Democrat among the Long Island State Senate candidates the NYC PBA endorsed. Also on its list: State Sens. Anthony Palumbo, Mario Mattera and Alexis Weik, and newcomers Dean Murray, Steven Rhoads and Patricia Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick.

Martins told The Point the initial campaign email was “an error.”

“We have the endorsement of every law enforcement agency here in Nassau County and we would have liked to have had the endorsement of the New York City PBA as well,” Martins said. “But Pat Lynch has been very clear and the membership’s been very clear that they’re going to hold people accountable for their votes [on criminal justice reform] and I would expect the rank and file to do just that.”

But in a statement regarding the endorsements, Kaplan emphasized that “public safety is my top priority as Senator.”

“I will always stand with our police to keep our community safe,” she said.

So far, it seems, the NYC PBA did not yet endorse in the 4th or the 6th SDs. That’s particularly interesting because the Republican challenger in SD6 is James Coll — a retired NYPD officer.

— Randi F. Marshall @RandiMarshall

Talking Point

Two tenants ready to fly

The plan for a life sciences hub in Ronkonkoma, part of a proposed project known as Midway Crossing, is moving slightly closer to becoming a reality as two institutions — Applied DNA Sciences and Northwell Health — have agreed to become tenants in the new complex.

And supporters of the development, along with the new tenants themselves, are hoping the signings will help the project get the state funding it needs.

Applied DNA Sciences chief executive James Hayward told The Point he’s hoping that Midway Crossing eventually will become the headquarters of his growing biotechnology company, which is currently based at the Long Island High Technology Incubator at Stony Brook University where it uses molecular and DNA-based technology in its work in drug development, supply-chain security, vaccination and more.

Hayward estimates that he could use up to 100,000 square feet of space at Midway’s life sciences hub. Eventually, that could mean adding about 250 new employees to the 70 Long Island workers he has now.

Midway Crossing, which would be situated on the southern side of the Ronkonkoma Hub, between the Long Island Rail Road train station and Long Island MacArthur Airport, could provide what Long Island has lacked until now — a complex geared for companies that have grown out of incubator space, but still want the cluster of institutions and employees critical to the life sciences industry, Hayward added.

“I think we’re on the verge of something that could last, that could provide momentum for multiple decades, literally for generations,” Hayward said. “It provides a place for scientists to commune and communicate. And with the hotel and conference center as an integral part, with the access to the airport and with the new investments in the Long Island Rail Road, you have all the dynamics you need to be able to build a very vibrant localized community that has access to the world.”

Northwell Health, meanwhile, has signed a letter of intent to use at least 100,000 square feet at Midway Crossing, with “the option to take much more,” said Northwell’s regional executive director and senior vice president Steve Bello.

Bello said he saw Midway as a place where various stages of research and development, and the applications of that research, could find a home together.

“For the health care delivery side to be able to partner with innovators in any kind of life science would be a really great opportunity,” Bello said. “And you’re now opening up a pipeline not just to talent but for organizations that depend on that talent to put roots on Long Island. That can’t be underestimated.”

And Northwell chief executive Michael Dowling told The Point that projects like Midway become even more important when considering how past efforts on the Island, like the development of the Nassau Hub, have not come to fruition.

“Many people have looked toward New York City as a hub of activity, but we can create hubs out here,” Dowling said. “We can’t let too many opportunities like this pass us by and we want to be a part of it.”

But while Midway Crossing has initial support from both the Town of Islip and Suffolk County, there’s still a long way to go, especially on funding the project, which is expected to also include a convention center, a hotel, some retail and other development. At the top of Bello’s to-do list: getting support from the Long Island Investment Fund, a $350 million state initiative to put money into significant projects across the region.

Said Bello: “It’s absolutely essential.”

— Randi F. Marshall @RandiMarshall

Pencil Point

The breadwinner

For more cartoons, visit www.newsday.com/nationalcartoons

Final Point

Money game

Something is conspicuously missing from the race for New York’s 1st Congressional District this time around: money.

In this month's filings, covering the entire cycle up to Sept. 30, Republican Nick LaLota has logged just over $900,000 in receipts and just under $650,000 in spending. Democrat Bridget Fleming posted close to $2.2 million in receipts, and just under $1.8 million in disbursements.

Those are significant sums, but compare them with the $7.1 million and $5.5 million that Rep. Lee Zeldin and Nancy Goroff raised by the same point in the 2020 cycle. Each candidate had spent around $4.5 million by then as well.

There was a similar pattern the cycle before that, with Zeldin and Perry Gershon each raising around $4 million and spending around $3 million.

The district has seen some, but not overwhelming, general election outside spending, although that could change.

On LaLota’s side, the low numbers are particularly striking given that they include fundraising and spending during a hard-fought primary, in which the Amityville Republican came out victorious over two candidates including Michelle Bond, the leader of a cryptocurrency trade group, who spent over $1.5 million.

A couple of potential factors to consider: On the Democratic side, Fleming is fundraising without tapping into a personal fortune or wealth network, something her fellow Democrats Gershon and Goroff did to the tune of hundreds of thousands of dollars in contributions or loans. As of Sept. 30, Fleming has also spent more this cycle than any Democratic congressional hopeful on Long Island, and raised more than all but one — Robert Zimmerman, a Democratic National committeeman.

From LaLota’s perspective, there’s another explanation for the low numbers: a field that’s trending in his direction. Republican donors, he told The Point, understand that the seat is “becoming increasingly safer.” And Democratic ones, he posits, “understand this is a seat probably out of their reach.”

Fleming campaign manager Seth Cohen counters that the campaign has seen “incredible enthusiasm not only from Democratic donors across the district” but “everyday working people,” too.

— Mark Chiusano @mjchiusano