Delia M. DeRiggi-Whitton for Nassau Legislative District 11

The 11th District includes most of the Port Washington peninsula and the east side of Hempstead Harbor from Roslyn Harbor to Glen Cove.

After 15 years, Delia M. DeRiggi-Whitton says she's never seen the county legislature's dynamic as dysfunctional and partisan as it is now. As the minority leader, she's frustrated. "It's like we don't exist unless they [the Republicans] need us to bond," she said, referring to the supermajority of votes needed to authorize borrowing.

But even within that difficult situation, DeRiggi-Whitton, a Glen Cove Democrat, is a persistent force, standing up to actions she opposes and meeting her constituents' needs.

And she has a vision for the future. DeRiggi-Whitton, 58, pictures a time when the legislature is "more rational," when opioid settlement dollars are distributed, the special deputy sheriff program ends, officials tackle the assessment system, and every district gets its funding for special projects.

Sea Cliff Republican John Canning has been a fixture in Nassau County for decades. As an original member of the 1996 county legislature, Canning remembers a very different time, when public hearings and debate were the norm — and he'd like to bring that back. With a booming voice and boisterous personality, Canning, 63, talks of working across the aisle and being a "spokesperson for the views and values of the community." He's particularly critical of the Propel NY Energy transmission line, which he says will adversely impact communities. "Do you have to destroy the environment in order to save it?" he asks. 

Canning's experience in how an independent legislature operates should be embraced by today's GOP lawmakers. But DeRiggi-Whitton is the experienced leader the district and county need now.

Newsday Opinion endorses DeRiggi-Whitton.