There is an air of local dissatisfaction with East Hampton Town Supervisor Kathee Burke-Gonzalez’s job performance. Some of it, especially problems in the Building Department, are systemic and not her fault alone. Others — the huge sum of money wasted on a failed senior center, for example — fall right into her lap. There is a sense that town ordinances do not apply to those who are wealthy and well connected, and that development projects are not getting adequate scrutiny. And then there is a circle-the-wagons mentality in which most town communication these days runs through a paid spokesman, which many constituents find insulting. Nonetheless, Ms. Burke-Gonzalez should cruise to a victory on Election Day — because there is no one else on the ballot.
Jerry Larsen’s hands-off write-in effort should not be a major factor, but bears noticing. Nothing has changed in our view that Mr. Larsen, whom we like personally, would take the Town of East Hampton in the wrong direction if he were to pull out a miracle upset.
Mr. Larsen is not running for office exactly; after a loss in a June Democratic Party primary to the incumbent, Ms. Burke-Gonzalez, several among his supporters carried on. Another defeat is widely expected when the votes are counted on Tuesday. However, Mr. Larsen and his backers seem to be playing the long game.
He started in politics about a decade ago after retiring as East Hampton Village chief of police, though his peripheral involvement began a couple of years earlier, in 2015, when his wife, Lisa Mulhern-Larsen, ran on the Republican and Independence Party lines for town board.
Ms. Mulhern-Larsen went down to defeat, as did the other Republican board candidates, amid outrage that most of their campaign donation cash was from businesses and individuals seeking to block tough new flight restrictions at the town-owned East Hampton Airport. When the books were closed, it turned out to have been East Hampton’s most expensive election ever — more than $650,000, of which Republicans out-raised and out-spent the Democrats by nearly 2 to 1.
Two years later, Mr. Larsen was on the Republican ticket for town board himself. At the time, he and Ms. Mulhern-Larsen were suing the village over what they saw as anti-competitive steps targeted against their home security side gig, which included providing services for the village’s largest taxpayer. He lost, then went on to a successful run for mayor, despite not living in the village. Since then, his pro-growth views earned him plenty of supporters and at least an equal number of detractors.
If Ms. Burke-Gonzalez is tight-lipped, Mr. Larsen is cloak-and-dagger. He has been able to keep taxes stable while undertaking village projects funded by secret donors, raising concerns about conflicts of interest. And, under Mr. Larsen, the business of government has been conducted behind closed doors, with measures springing fully formed out of the back rooms for pro forma votes by the village trustees. As friendly as he is, it has been difficult for Mr. Larsen to shake the cloud that surrounds him that he is acting on behalf of himself — and special interests — and not for village residents.
In the end, it comes down to this: Yes, we would like to see Ms. Burke-Gonzalez or even someone else do a better job managing Town Hall. But, no, we do not think Mr. Larsen is the right choice.