Both candidates -- Democrat Kevan Abrahams, who won that election, and Republican Ricky LaRosa -- are smart, committed to the community and informed on the issues, but the Herald, as it did last September, endorses Abrahams.
Abrahams, who served as the budget director for the Democrats in the Legislature before he was elected, has a firm grasp on the fiscal problems facing the county, and he can concisely express those problems and the steps the county has taken to try to solve them to the voters, as he demonstrated in a recent candidates' forum.
And though Abrahams has only served a year as legislator, he has taken steps to get to know his district's needs and to address those needs by holding forums on gang violence and economic development. He is not simply a "rubber stamp" for County Executive Tom Suozzi, as his opponent has suggested, as he voted against a Suozzi-backed plan to cut $600,000 from county youth services.
LaRosa is passionate when he talks about corporate influence in politics, the difficulties of raising a family on a Wal-Mart salary and how the two-party system has turned the electorate apathetic. And, unlike some other candidates for office, when he says he will not toe the party line, we believe him. But we also feel that LaRosa has not proven that Abrahams is not doing the job.
As a Republican, LaRosa faces an uphill battle in getting elected to public office in the heavily Democratic First District, but we think he will be a fierce advocate for the district when he finds the right place to put his passion to work.
The Herald endorses Kevan Abrahams in the First District.
