Voters Guide 2013: County Legislator, Town Supervisor Seats Up for Grabs

Election Day is November 5 and residents in Babylon Village will have a lot to vote on – a new county legislator, town councilman and a town supervisor.

With schools closed and the weather expected to be nice, there is no excuse to not be able to get out and cast your vote.

Suffolk County Legislator – 14th District

The Suffolk County Legislature will have a new member from our area beginning next year as longtime member and current presiding officer Wayne Horsley announced he will step down at the end of his term to take a position with the State Parks Department.

Running for his position on the legislature as the representative of District 14, which encompasses Babylon Village, Lindenhurst and parts of North Babylon and West Babylon, are Tom Dolan, the Democratic candidate, and Republican candidate Kevin McCaffrey.

Dolan, who has also received endorsements from the Independence Party and The Schaffer Team, is a Lindenhurst native with a background in financial planning. He currently serves as a board member on the Lindenhurst Football and Cheerleading League, but has not held a government position before.

McCaffrey, also running on the Conservative Party lines, is a Lindenhurst native as well. He currently serves as the Deputy Mayor of Lindenhurst and has been a village trustee since 1990. In addition to his role as deputy mayor, McCaffrey is the president of Teamsters Local 707, which primarily represents workers in the Nassau County OTB and trucking industry.

Town Races

The Town of Babylon will have a few seats up for grabs as well:

• Town Supervisor: Rich Schaffer, a Democrat, and Christopher Connors, a Republican
• Town Council Member (two seats): Antonio Martinez and Lindsay Henry
• Town Clerk: Carol Quirk, a Democrat, and William Barci, a Republican
• Town District Court Judge (two seats): Carl Copertino and Gaetan Lozito

• Amend the state constitution to allow up to seven non-Native American-run casinos. The first phase would limit casinos to four upstate sites in the first seven years, after which downstate sites could be proposed.
• Increase the mandatory retirement age for judges from 70 to 80.
• Extend for ten years an amendment to allow municipalities to exclude costs to finance sewer systems from their constitutional debt limits.
• Give disabled veterans additional civil service credit after they have been appointed to a civil service position.

• Proposition Seven would allow the county's rights of ownership to municipal fire districts, ambulance districts, police districts and library districts to be transferred so they can expand without having to purchase additional development rights.