King endorses Martins in county executive race

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U.S. Rep. Peter King, a Republican from Seaford, endorsed Jack Martins, a Republican from Mineola, for Nassau County executive.

King announced his endorsement at a news conference at Massapequa American Legion Post 1066 on July 5. With Martins and Massapequa Park Mayor Jeffrey Pravato at his side, King noted that Jack’s, intellect, strength of character and integrity always struck him.

“Jack Martins is the change in leadership we need to get Nassau County back in the right direction,” he said. “He has the independence and integrity that Nassau needs.”

Martins served as mayor of Mineola and represented North Hempstead in the State Senate. He unsuccessfully ran for New York’s 3rd District seat in the House of Representatives in 2016, losing to Democrat Thomas Suozzi.

At his campaign announcement in April, Martins said that, during his time in the State Senate, he worked to cap property taxes and state spending, roll back the MTA Payroll tax, end the unfair Gap Elimination Adjustment and passed the constitutional amendment stripping corrupt elected officials of taxpayer funded pensions. Martins also led the State Senate’s Workforce Development Task Force and chaired Senate committees on labor and local government.

As mayor of Mineola, Martins said, he developed balanced, fiscally responsible budgets and debt management plans that substantially reduced Mineola’s debt and returned the village to a sound financial footing.

King, who represents Seaford, part of North Wantagh and communities across the South Shore of Nassau and Suffolk counties, said that Martins’s combination of experience as a small business owner, mayor and state senator would serve him well if he were elected county executive. He also commended Martin’s ethics plan.

“He will put taxpayers first and bring honesty and transparency to county government,” King said. “Very significantly, Jack will confront opioid abuse, fight crime and keep our communities safe.”

Martins thanked King for his support. “It means so much coming from him,” he said. “Peter King is a true Long Islander in public service. We can trust him to always put Long Island first and to work across the aisle to get things done.”

On July 13, Martins submitted 34,322 signatures to the Board of Elections — thousands more than Democratic candidates Laura Curran or George Maragos submitted, he said — to appear as a candidate for county executive on the September primary ballot. County Executive Ed Mangano, who is facing federal corruption charges, will not be running for a third term as a Republican.