Nevertheless, Scaturro’s outsider persona and strident, intellectual appeal to conservative principles has won him supporters among the Republican base, especially those who associate themselves with the Tea Party. In 2012, Scaturro lost the Republican congressional primary to County Legislator Francis Becker, but he beat Becker for the Conservative Party’s nomination through a write-in ballot campaign, which propelled Scaturro into the general election against Becker and McCarthy. And Blakeman’s star power has waned since he lost a 1998 race for state comptroller. One year later, he lost his seat in the County Legislature, and the next time he campaigned, in a 2010 race for U.S. Senate, he finished a distant third in the Republican primary. Blakeman declined an invitation to debate Scaturro.

“It comes down to how strong the Republican organization still is as at a time when it’s not always as dominant as it used to be,” Levy said. “And Frank Scaturro is clearly running as an insurgent outside the party … He does have some following among disgruntled Republicans. But it will be interesting to see how well an insurgent Republican can do running against the Republican machine at a time when it’s not quite as strong as it used to be.”

Candidate profiles

Kevan Abrahams (D)

Age: 39

Lives in: Freeport

Family: Wife, Stephanie; children Kennedy and Carter

Education: Bachelor’s degree, Queens College

Career: Nassau County legislator; senior analyst, North Shore-LIJ Health System. Formerly: Budget director, Nassau County Legislature’s Democratic caucus; legislative aide to Rep. Carolyn McCarthy; legislative aide to Rep. Floyd Flake.

Political experience: Elected seven times to Nassau County Legislature’s 1st District since 2002. The district now includes parts of Baldwin, East Meadow, Freeport, Hempstead, Roosevelt and Uniondale. With the support of his fellow Democrats, Abrahams has been the Legislature’s minority leader since 2012.