DeRiggi-Whitton to lead Democrats in 2024 Nassau County Legislature

Nassau County Legislator Delia DeRiggi-Whitton has been designated to serve as minority leader by the members of the Nassau County Legislative Democratic Caucus starting in 2024.
DeRiggi-Whitton, 55, of Glen Cove, won her seventh two-year term with more than 64 percent of the vote in the 2023 general election. As the leader, she would succeed current Minority Leader Kevan Abrahams, who has served in the role since 2012 and is leaving office at year’s end after not seeking re-election.

DeRiggi-Whitton’s ascension will mark the latest milestone in two decades of service as an elected official. Prior to becoming a legislator, she served two terms on the Glen Cove City Council, where she began to build her reputation as a fiscal hawk and strident environmental advocate aware of the community’s needs.

As legislator DeRiggi-Whitton helped secure funding for Scudder’s Pond — one of the most contaminated bodies of water around Hempstead Harbor due to storm runoff — which would help reduce nitrogen levels around the harbor.

She also helped residents and businesses link up to a new sewage line in Sea Cliff with reimbursements as high as $7,500 for their efforts. Sea Cliff has been attempting to fix sewage issues in the village for two decades, with fits and starts across five village administrations.

DeRiggi-Whitton also boasts a record she says helped spearhead efforts in both Sea Cliff and Glen Cove to improve the quality of life for residents on Shore Road in the form of traffic calming and even a countywide streetscape project. That includes installing radar speed-check devices, reducing the number of travel lanes to discourage speeding, and the reconfiguration of on-street parking.

DeRiggi-Whitton said the Democratic caucus will remain keenly focused upon oversight of the Bruce Blakeman administration; reaffirm the Legislature’s crucial role as a provider of checks and balances as a coequal branch of government; and prioritize the delivery of initiatives that will make Nassau more affordable and protect the environment; preserve public safety; reinvest in infrastructure; and enhance the response to the ongoing opioid drug addiction crisis.

“Being selected by my colleagues to lead our caucus at such a dynamic time in the history of the Legislature is a tremendous honor, and I am deeply humbled by the trust they have placed in me,” DeRiggi-Whitton said. “I want to thank Nassau County Democratic Committee Chairman Jay Jacobs and my Democratic colleagues for their support and extend my gratitude to my colleague and friend Kevan Abrahams for his guidance and leadership during the last 12 years. I am beyond proud to lead our team into the future, and we are ready to directly confront and overcome Nassau County’s greatest challenges.”

DeRiggi-Whitton is a founding board member of the not-for-profit First City Project Collective, which seeks to leverage the community-building power of the arts to spark an artistic and economic renaissance in downtown Glen Cove. One of the organization’s signature events is an annual Toys for Tots drive at Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum, which has grown from its roots in Glen Cove to become the largest one-day collection event in America. During this time, she further distinguished herself in numerous philanthropic endeavors such as the Diabetes Research Institute Foundation. After her daughter Amanda was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes at age three, DeRiggi-Whitton has been an outspoken advocate for diabetes awareness, treatment, and research, and remains a prolific fundraiser who has helped to raise well over $1 million through annual “Cooking for a Cure” events.

DeRiggi-Whitton said she intends to be a “fiscal watchdog,” citing concerns over County Executive Bruce Blakeman’s handling of funds from the American Rescue Plan Act and a 2021 opioid-related lawsuit with drug manufacturers, distributors, and pharmacies. She believes Blakeman has chosen to put those funds into the county’s reserve to get out of the crosshairs of the Nassau County Interim Finance Authority.

“It’s really amazing that Mr. Blakeman has chosen not to do anything with it other than hold on to it for his own personal gain,” DeRiggi-Whitton said. “I’m okay with us getting away from NIFA, but not on the idea of holding on to opioid funding.”

DeRiggi-Whitton’s selection as minority leader will be formalized in January during organizational meetings for the 15th term of the Nassau County Legislature. Under the Nassau County Charter, the legislator who receives a majority of votes from the body’s 19 members will lead the Legislature as presiding officer; the runner-up in that tally from the opposing party becomes the minority leader.