Congratulations are in order to the Republicans who defeated incumbent Democrats in the county Legislature. The majority has now shifted to the GOP after the Democrats held it for 10 years. more

Kathleen Rice ascended to the district attorney’s post four years ago as a virtual unknown -- a former federal prosecutor and Brooklyn assistant district attorney who had never run for political office before. Back then, she appeared a tad unsure of herself, slightly nervous in her interviews with the Herald. And why not? She was opposing the legendary Denis Dillon, who had served as Nassau County district attorney for 31 years. Despite being a political neophyte, Rice ran a strong campaign, and was elected with 51 percent of the vote to Dillon’s 49 percent. Four years later, we’re happy that Rice was elected. She has proven herself to be a consummate professional who only improved an already well-run D.A.’s office. Cases are processed nearly twice as fast as they once were. Conviction rates are up. And Rice has garnered a national reputation for her aggressive stance against driving while intoxicated. Many now call her the toughest DWI prosecutor in the country. more

It’s hard to argue with a track record like that of Nassau County Executive Thomas Suozzi, a Democrat from Glen Cove. Over the past eight years, he took a fiscally mismanaged, virtually insolvent county and turned it around, consistently balancing a budget that seemingly could not be balanced. Suozzi saved money by cutting the county work force by 1,000 employees and instituting tried-and-true management practices that were previously nonexistent. At the same time, he has put in place a host of programs to improve residents’ quality of life, from smoking-cessation regimens to energy-efficiency incentives. more

While it might be easy to overlook the office of county clerk, the office plays an important role in keeping Nassau County’s court cases and real estate humming. They hum now, at least, and that’s in large part the work of County Clerk Maureen O’Connell, who has earned the Herald’s endorsement. more

In the race for Town of Hempstead clerk, the choice is clear: Republican incumbent Mark Bonilla of Bellmore. more

From the day she took office in 1997, Norma Gonsalves has been in the political game for all the right reasons. Time and again, she has put her community before politics.Twelve years later, we are … more

This year’s election in Nassau County’s 2nd Legislative District is an extremely important one. No matter who wins, history will be made because new leadership will begin in the district. After being represented by Democrat Roger Corbin for 14 years, voters now have three community leaders vying to represent them. more

While Nassau County residents are paying some of the highest taxes in the nation, Comptroller Howard Weitzman has done his part to ease the burden somewhat. During the past eight years Weitzman has shown that he is a competent financial watchdog, and has looked for savings in places no one before him ever tried. more

Too often, we hear the horror stories of DWI. A drunken driver rips apart a family, maiming or killing a father, a mother, a brother or sister. Since the outbreak of World War I in 1914, more Americans have died in drunken driving crashes than in both World Wars and the Vietnam War combined — 594,161 U.S. soldiers compared with 1.6 million DWI victims and counting, according to Mothers Against Drunk Driving. more

It’s time to speak up. It’s time to show up. Two major projects are in the works. The first, the Lighthouse — right next door — is being described as the largest development … more