Tommy John Schiavoni for Assembly District 1

The 1st Assembly District rematch between Democratic incumbent Tommy John Schiavoni and Republican Stephen F. Kiely features two of the most ideologically different candidates on the Island.

Their biggest difference is on immigration. Kiely wants local municipalities to cooperate with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement patrols while Schiavoni said ICE action on the East End will “rock our communities in ways that we really don’t even know.”

Kiely wants to eliminate unfunded state mandates in special education that drive up school costs while Schiavoni backs increasing the cap on budget reserves for special education costs to reduce the burden on smaller school districts especially impacted by having to include those costs in their tax cap formula.

Schiavoni, 63, of Sag Harbor, a former teacher, school board member and Southampton Town councilmember, said charter schools need more oversight and local industrial development agencies must rein in tax breaks for corporations that deprive schools of revenue. He also wants “some” exemptions from the state’s property tax cap for municipalities.

Schiavoni said he supports the state data center moratorium because municipalities are at a disadvantage against the influence of billion-dollar companies. And he wants expanded Long Island Rail Road service to reduce traffic congestion and increase the number of customers for local businesses. “The East End of the South Fork of Long Island is one of the main economic engines of Suffolk County,” he said.

Kiely, 51, of Mattituck, offers a wealth of governmental experience, having served as an attorney for several municipalities and as a prosecutor for two East End villages. He wants to revise recent changes in state bail laws and protect the character of the East End from any proposals to reduce the minimum size of residential lots to a quarter-acre. Kiely favors the concept of a “manor house,” which he describes as having three units inside but “looks like one single house from the street,” as well as accessory apartments and rentals above stores.

To support a critical local industry, Schiavoni wants to exempt fishing boats from the sales tax on fuel. His bill to require the state to collect data on tick-borne illness and the insurance coverage of such claims was vetoed in 2025 by the governor. This year, he is trying to make alpha-gal syndrome a mandated reportable disease and he supports recognition of the Montaukett Indian Nation.

Protecting the environment is a critical component of the portfolio of the East End representative and Schiavoni best follows in the tradition of Fred Thiele, who represented the district for more than three decades.

Newsday Opinion endorses Schiavoni.