Carini re-elected to Town Board; Koslow wins his county seat

Voters across Long Island went to the polls on Tuesday to cast ballots for the Nassau County Legislature and the Hempstead Town Board.

In the race in the county’s 5th Legislative District, Democratic candidate Seth Koslow declared victory over his Republican opponent, Joe Baker, following a close race, and will represent Freeport, Bellmore and Merrick.

“I’m a Democrat and a criminal defense attorney,” said Koslow, who’s from Baldwin. “My opponent was a court officer for three decades. Republicans would have you believe that the police would support him. But they endorsed me, because I want to work with them to solve our safety issues, like enforcing gun laws, tackling hate crimes, and addressing staffing shortages.”

As of press time late Tuesday, Koslow had a 534-vote margin over Baker.

Koslow said that his legal background, as both a prosecutor and a defense attorney, uniquely equips him to address the complexities of the justice system.

He aims to bridge the gap between communities and law enforcement, advocating for meaningful changes in community safety.

A father of three, Koslow is active in youth programs, reinforcing his commitment to keeping young people engaged in the community.

“Republicans would also have you believe that security and freedom are mutually exclusive,” he said, “but my experience reflects the reality that we can keep families safe while also protecting the rights of communities of color in an unfair system. Police and communities are safest when we all trust each other.”

Republican Town Councilman Christopher Carini was re-elected tor a second term. Carini, who’s from Seaford, has long advocated focusing on quality-of-life issues that he says plague Hempstead communities and in turn the surrounding towns and communities as well. He plans to continue focusing on these everyday issues.

Carini was first elected to the Town Board in 2019. Republicans had originally nominated Erin King Sweeney, but she dropped out late in the race, and Carini was added to the ballot just six weeks before the election.

He said he kept his promises — keeping taxes low and making improvements throughout the 5th Councilmanic District, which stretches from Seaford to Point Lookout.

Carini beat his Democratic challenger, Jasmine Peña, by 5,491 votes.

“Thank you to everyone in this room,” Carini said on Tuesday night. “Tomorrow we start our work, and continue our fight for safe and affordable neighborhoods.”