Politics & Government

Johnson, Martins Debate Albany-Long Island Relationship

In final portion of five part debate, candidates debate relationship between Albany, NYC and Long Island.

Seventh state senatorial district candidates Mineola Mayor Jack Martins, R,I,C, - Mineola, and incumbent state Sen. Craig Johnson, D- Port Washington, squared off Monday afternoon in a News 12 debate in Woodbury moderated by Doug Geed.

Patch will be bringing you coverage of the debate over the course of five days, focusing on a different debate topic each day.

The dichotomy between the city and suburbia was the final topic the candidates were asked to touch upon as well as the relationship between Albany, Long Island and the rest of the state.

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

 "It took three minutes for me to be in Albany when I was elected to realize how dysfunctional Albany was," Johnson said, mentioning the various situations with Joseph Bruno, Hiram Monserrate and Pedro Espada. "Both sides deserve blame." Johnson said he had signed on to former New York City Mayor Ed Kotch's reform efforts and supports independent redistricting.  "We need to take the redistricting process out of the legislative hands and put it into the independent process because the problem is we have career politicians," he said, adding he has a bill to give the state attorney general the power to investigate elected officials.

Martins sees it more of a "Long Island – New York City issue," when "time and again, our resources are taken away from us and given to New York City."

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

"If you represent the suburbs and you represent Long Island, I think you have a responsibility to make sure that you represent those people who elected you," he said, charging that Johnson has voted "over 99-percent of the time" with senate Democrats in favor of New York City.

Johnson was not given an outright rebuttal, but during his closing comments said that "my opponent has never been able to square his rhetoric with his record."

"Either we continue with the same failed liberal tax and spend policies that got us into this mess to begin with or we take this state in a new direction," Martins said.

The seventh state senatorial district of New York includes Mineola, Port Washington, Great Neck, Roslyn, Westbury and Hicksville.


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