Village Elections...Anyone?

By Matt Jablow

Just when I thought I had heard all the ways that the economy has affected our lives, along comes another:  a significant decrease in the number of people running for certain elected offices on Long Island.  Because of the fact that most village-wide positions -- mayor and trustee -- are volunteer jobs, there simply aren't a lot of people interested in filling those jobs.  Check this out:  of the 40 villages holding elections tomorrow, only five have contested races for Mayor, only eight have contested races for Trustee, and only two (that's right, two) have contested races for Justice.

Hofstra Professor Larry Levy, a former Newsday columnist whom I knew from my first stint at News 12 in the 1990s, explained that a lot of Long Islanders are working harder than ever, either trying to hold on to their jobs or to keep their small businesses above water.  Too many others have been laid off and are spending a lot of their time looking for work.  A time-consuming volunteer job just doesn't fit into their lives right now.

I also spoke today with Leonard Samansky, the Mayor of Saddle Rock (a village I had never been to before today....so scenic...right on the water...).  He'll be running unopposed tomorrow seeking his tenth term as Mayor.  While he understands why most people aren't interested in volunteer elected office during these tough economic times, Mayor Samansky warns that the quality of life in villages on Long Island could suffer if more people don't get involved in local government. 

I'll be curious to see when the economy turns around if more people choose to run for village-wide office.  Sounds like a good follow-up story for the next village election cycle in 2011.  What do you think?  Would you run? 

Comments

[Unbelievable]

How about in Bellerose Village, where an existing trustee wouldn't campaign against a new candidate but had the nerve to get 96 of his friends to do a write-in vote and he won 97-95. Now thats a story Matt!

[Bill Martin]

Why hasnt News12 done a story on that kid who ran for Mayor of Freeport? He was knocked out by the Democratic challenger Andrew Hardwick, but this kid had a great opportunity. From what I read, he was the youngest in Freeports history to run. Not many good stories coming from that town, that sure seems like a notable one.

[Sven]

I think there not running cause it's getting harder to rip off the public without them being caught!