East Hampton Mayor Jerry Larsen challenges Town Supervisor Kathy Burke-Gonzalez in Democratic primary

East Hampton is bracing for a tumultuous Democratic primary for the town's top job as Village Mayor Jerry Larsen mounts a challenge against incumbent Supervisor Kathee Burke-Gonzalez.

Larsen, 61, the mayor since September 2020 and a former village police chief, said Burke-Gonzalez has failed to make progress on a number of fronts. Affordable housing is still an acute issue in the region, he said, and the town's building department is slow to process applications, stifling development.

“There's a lot of mismanagement going on down there, and I'm just frustrated by watching it," Larsen, of East Hampton Village, said in an interview. 

Burke-Gonzalez, 64, of Springs, has been town supervisor since 2024 and was a board member for a decade before that. She previously worked in advertising. Burke-Gonzalez is touting her record and experience in town government and has the backing of the East Hampton Town and Suffolk County Democratic Committees. 

In an interview, she points to accomplishments including beach renourishment and dredging projects, the transformation of the historic Montauk Playhouse into a community center, millions for land preservation, and upgrades to parks and beaches.

"There's still work we need to get done,” Burke-Gonzalez said in an interview. “We've got a great team in place … and we're getting good things done for our community.”

Larsen’s strategy has been to focus on enrolling more Democrats so they can vote in the primary June 23. He said he has helped register about 200 unaffiliated voters so far. Larsen describes himself as a political moderate and says he is targeting centrist voters.

That strategy has sparked pushback from party officials who have accused Larsen of filling the Democratic Party with voters who don't support its mission. In December, officials from the state, county and town Democratic committees sent him a cease-and-desist letter over his campaign logo: "East Hampton Democrats for a New Town." Committee leaders said the language was deceptive and implied that they backed Larsen over Burke-Gonzalez.

In East Hampton Town, Democrats outnumber Republicans by more than 2-1, according to data from the State Board of Elections. As of November, there were 9,877 Democrats, 4,207 Republicans and 6,380 unaffiliated voters registered to vote in the town. East Hampton has not had a Republican supervisor since 2013, and Democrats have won supervisor races by double-digits margins since then.

Republicans have yet to name a candidate for supervisor. Manny Vilar, chair of the East Hampton Republican Committee, said the committee is screening candidates to run in the general election.

Intraparty feuding

Rich Schaffer, chair of the Suffolk Democratic Committee, said Larsen’s push to enroll more Democrats who will vote for him was akin to party-raiding. He likened the tactic to Conservatives and Republicans who, Democrats say, have hijacked the liberal Working Families Party ballot line in the towns of Huntington and Southampton. The tactic helps to siphon votes from Democratic tickets.

“He knows that he doesn't have the support of hardworking Democrats who have either made up the party or have been part of the party over the years,” Schaffer said in an interview. “So he's got to go in there and try and beg people to sign up to change their registration before the deadline."

“I think it speaks volumes as to how little support he has among Democrats in the town,” Schaffer added. 

To qualify for the primary, Larsen is required to collect signatures of 5% of the town's active registered voters, according to the Suffolk County Board of Elections.

Larsen called the party-raiding accusation "ridiculous." Because of the Democrats' enrollment advantage, Larsen said, town residents have to vote in the primary to effectively influence the town supervisor's race. 

"Just like in New York City, if you win the Democratic line here in East Hampton, you're almost guaranteed to win the general election," he said. 

Larsen said the "East Hampton Democrats" slogan was a play on the NewTown Party — a coalition he used to win the mayor's race — and named for a prominent street in the village.

“It just appeared that he was presenting himself as the official Democratic Party in East Hampton, which is just not accurate,” said Anna Skrenta, chair of the East Hampton Town Democratic Committee, who signed the cease-and-desist letter. The letter was also signed by Schaffer and Jay Jacobs, the chair of the state and Nassau County Democratic Committees.

Larsen removed the word "Democrats" from the website and logo, which now reads: “East Hampton Residents for a New Town.” 

“I said, 'You know what? It's just a silly name,' " Larsen said. "So, I dropped the whole thing.” 

Back-to-back elections

Burke-Gonzalez won a second term as supervisor in November. She had no challengers. 

Normally a two-year term, the supervisor’s seat is on the ballot again this year. A new state law has shifted most local elections to even-numbered years. The winner will serve a two-year term and the salary is $148,350. 

On Jan. 14, Burke-Gonzalez won the town Democratic committee's endorsement with 88% of the vote, which is weighted. Larsen received 12% of the committee's vote.

Larsen has served as mayor of the village, population 1,500, since September 2020. He owns a security company, ProTech Security. Before becoming mayor, he worked for the village's police department for 34 years, including 14 as the chief. He ran unsuccessfully for town board in 2017 on the Republican line. He was an unaffiliated voter and a member of the Independence Party before enrolling as a Democrat in 2020, according to Suffolk County Board of Elections records.

Larsen has raised $132,000 since declaring his candidacy last year, including from businesses and people in the real estate and construction industries. Larsen has $84,388 in his campaign account, according to a Jan. 15 campaign filing, while Burke-Gonzalez has $13,213.50 on hand. 

Taxes, housing are key issues

Larsen has criticized Burke-Gonzalez’s administration for a successive string of tax increases. The townwide tax levy increased nearly 8.9% in 2025 and is up 6.3% in this year's budget. The village's 2025-26 budget increased taxes by 1.3%.

Burke-Gonzalez said the town has to contend with several budgetary pressures, including salary growth and the rising cost of employee benefits.

Larsen said the town has struggled to grow affordable housing since Burke-Gonzalez took office, pointing to a lack of progress on Cantwell Court, a 16-lot affordable housing project.

Burke-Gonzalez said the proposal stalled after construction bids came in too high, making it difficult for the homes to be sold at affordable prices. She said the town has applied to a state modular housing program to develop the homes at lower price points. 

The town is “making great strides” on affordable housing, she said, and is working to expand an accessory dwelling unit program. 

Larsen said the town’s building department has been “dysfunctional” under Burke-Gonzalez's tenure. Building permits and certificates of occupancy can take too long to process, he said.

In April, the town’s principal building inspector resigned and took a job with the village's building department. Following his departure, the town cut public office hours, prompting resident complaints about delays. 

In September, the town hired a new principal building inspector and announced new staff and changes. The town board recently hired an outside firm to speed up plan reviews, Burke-Gonzalez said.

Improvements are underway, the supervisor said, “but it’s going to take us time to get there.”