Juleigh Chin for Nassau Legislative District 9

The 9th District includes Mineola, North New Hyde Park, North Hills, Manhasset Hills, Searingtown, East Williston and parts of New Hyde Park and Williston Park.

When Scott P. Strauss, a Mineola Republican, was first elected three years ago, he promised to take risks and address big challenges. Strauss, 63, previously served as Mineola's mayor, where he exhibited independent leadership.

But now, Strauss is just one of a crowd. He echoes rhetoric of his Republican majority colleagues, saying he reaches out privately about the administration's actions. A baseball manager gets better calls when he doesn't "yell at the umpire," Strauss said.

"Just because we're not publicly demanding things doesn't mean the demand isn't there," he said.

Strauss highlights funds he's obtained for public safety and infrastructure, like a Marcus Avenue police booth and Herricks Road flood mitigation. He admits he finds it "frustrating" that Democratic colleagues have trouble securing funding from the county, but he hasn't spoken out about that, either.

Roslyn Democrat Juleigh Chin, who lost to Strauss last year, says even in the majority, Strauss hasn't done enough to meet local needs. Chin, 54, promises to be more responsive and a better advocate. Chin, who serves on the Herricks school board and works for Northwell Health, underscores the need to fix "crumbling" Christopher Morley Park and reopen its long-closed pool. But she's also willing to tackle broader countywide concerns, suggesting the creation of a master plan to address infrastructure needs across Nassau and pushing for next steps to truly address the beleaguered assessment system.

"Most problems are pretty hard to solve," Chin said. "But we have to at least make a plan to take baby steps ... You can't just ignore it."

Chin can do much more than that. She's poised to hit the ground running on issues big and small.

Newsday Opinion endorses Chin.