Melissa Miller defeats Anthony Cruz for Hempstead seat

Former Assemblywoman Melissa “Missy” Miller, who was appointed to the Hempstead Town board earlier this year, defeated Valley Stream resident Anthony Cruz in the Third Council District special election on Nov. 8. Miller, a Republican, succeeded Bruce Blakeman who was elected Nassau County executive last year.

As of press time, Miller was leading  59 percent to 41 percent.

Miller, 58, a lifelong Atlantic Beach resident, has served the 20th Assembly District for the five years. In that time has shown that she can work across the aisle and has become an effective elected officials by co-sponsoring bills in Albany with Democrats and advocating for the disabled community, an issue that hits home as she is the parent of a special needs child, her son Oliver.

"I'm quiet, but I get stuff done," Miller said, in response to criticism that she is not confrontational enough. " I never in a million years that I've ever been in government or politics, but because of my son and his special needs, and how I had to fight for everything he needed I got involved." 

She was also at the forefront of advocating for the legalization of medicinal marijuana as Oliver suffers from hundreds of daily seizures due to having suffered a pre-birth stroke. The  medically prescribed oil form of marijuana with a low concentration of tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC — the compound that gives users a high — could substantially reduce the frequency and severity of the seizures.

Cruz, 20, ran a campaign focused on three core issues: empowerment, infrastructure and accessibility. The Democratic candidate proposed creating a database that provides a timeline for infrastructure projects such as repair and renovation of roads and highways under the town’s jurisdiction.

He also spoke about reviewing the accessibility of town meetings, revisiting the possibility of having a remote option and improving public access to documents and information on the town’s website.

His interest in politics dates to high school when he was chosen as a student liaison to the school district’s Board of Education as a senior at Valley Stream Central High School in 2018.