Election 2012

Pair of primaries for new Assembly district

Posted

Three candidates are seeking the Democratic endorsement to run for the newly created 22nd Assembly District in the Sept. 13 primary. There is also a contested primary for the Working Families line. The winners will square off against Republican nominee Sean Wright in November.

The new district runs along the western Nassau County border, stretching from Bellerose to North Woodmere. It includes all of Valley Stream and Elmont and part of Franklin Square.

Seeking the Democratic nomination are Patricia Maher of East Meadow, Michaelle Solages of Elmont and Milagros Vicente of North Valley Stream. Solages and Gary D’Annunzio of Valley Stream are competing on the Working Families line, meaning that there could be as many as three candidates on November’s ballot.

Solages, 27, grew up in Elmont, attending Dutch Broadway School and Carey High School. “I want to make a difference in the community that I have lived in for my entire life,” she said of her candidacy. “I was encouraged to run for the seat by many community leaders, organizers and friends. My decision to run was motivated, in part, because I have the qualifications and experience needed to represent the district in the Assembly.”

This is Solages’s first run for public office, but she is no stranger to the campaign trail. Last year her brother Carrié was elected to the Nassau County Legislature.

Vicente emerged as a community leader earlier this year, fighting to save the Nassau County Police Department’s 5th Precinct in Elmont, which is slated to be merged with the 4th Precinct in Hewlett. A mother of three, Vicente said that deciding to run for the Assembly was difficult, but she was persuaded to do so by her family, friends and other community leaders.

“What I heard from my neighbors and local leaders is that they are tired of being ignored by their local elected officials and tired of the same old business as usual in Albany,” she said. “I want to ensure that the community’s voices are heard in Albany, and that we get back the resources we need to make our homes a better place to live.”

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