This post was contributed by a community member. The views expressed here are the author's own.

Politics & Government

LaValle Faces Challenger Maertz for State Senate

The State Senate race in the first district shapes up with Ken LaValle running on 34 years of experience and Democrats rallying for change in Albany.

State Senator Kenneth P. LaValle, R - Port Jefferson, is running for his 18th consecutive term in office when voters head to the polls on Nov. 2 to cast their votes. And for the first time in a long time, he faces a challenger: Rocky Point attorney Jenifer Maertz.

Democrats, rallying behind Maertz, are counting on an anti-incumbent sentiment they say is widespread in the first district among both Democrats and Republicans.

"It is amazing," said Maertz, co-chair of the Brookhaven Town Democrats. "Most people usually have no idea what's going on at the state level. Now as soon as you mention Albany they say the incumbents have got to go. People want change. They want new leadership with 21st century ideas."

Find out what's happening in North Forkwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

LaValle, first elected in 1976, often ran for re-election unopposed in a district that includes all five East End towns and parts of Brookhaven.

"A run against LaValle was considered political suicide," said Art Tillman, chairman of the Southold Town Democratic Party. "No one wanted to run against the guy and lose."

Find out what's happening in North Forkwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

LaValle, according to his campaign manager Joann Ingham, is running on his record.

"My boss is running the same kind of campaign that he always runs," Ingham said.

After 34 years in office, numbers show that LaValle's campaign strategy has worked. Prior to a 2008 race in which he went unopposed, LaValle garnered 66 percent of the vote in 2006, 63 percent in 2004, and 71 percent in 2002. Ingham calls him "one of the highest vote-getters in the state."

However Maertz is hoping to pull dissatisfied Republicans and Democrats who she hopes will head to the voting polls looking for new leadership. While LaValle earned 100 percent of the State Senate vote two years ago, Board of Election numbers show only 38 percent of eligible voters cast a ballot in the race.

"People always say LaValle is unbeatable, when he is highly beatable ,"Maertz said. Maertz pointed to the fact that rather than voting for LaValle in 2008, many voters instead chose not to cast a ballot.

Denis Noncarrow, Southold Town's Republican Party leader, said that right now, the election is anyone's call.

"A guy with a great record of service in the district could be turned out of office because of all this discontent," he said.

On the stump, LaValle has the benefit of being able to look back 36 years and recall different lives he has touched and regarding policy, points to his roles in implementing the STAR and STAR Rebate programs and preserving land throughout the years.

Maertz is critical of the STAR rebate programs.

"Talking about a $400 tax rebate check is not the solution when middle class families are paying ten thousand dollars a year in taxes", Maertz said.

Maertz also has the benefit of offering voters a fresh face, and being a newcomer can point to rising taxes during LaValle's tenure and chaos in Albany as reasons for a change.

If she is successful, Maertz will be the first woman from Suffolk County to be elected to the state Senate. She celebrated her first birthday in 1976, the same year LaValle was first elected.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here

The views expressed in this post are the author's own. Want to post on Patch?