“I am going to run for town supervisor,” East Hampton Village Mayor Jerry Larsen told a room full of supporters on Friday night at Si Si, the restaurant at the EHP Resort on Three Mile Harbor.
In a recording of his speech that was leaked to The Star, he not only confirmed his 2026 candidacy, which until now he has publicly denied, but also revealed a key part of his strategy.
“If you want control of your town, you have to vote in the primary,” he told the audience at Si Si. “It’s the only way we can win this. If you go back to the sign-in desk, give us your information, we will get you registered as a Democrat. Give us your cellphone and name and we will seek you out.”
Mr. Larsen has met with smaller groups of lawyers, builders, and real estate agents, reportedly giving them the same message, to make sure if they are registered “blank” that they re-register as Democrats so they can vote in the June 2026 primary, in which it is expected he will challenge the current Democratic supervisor, Kathee Burke-Gonzalez. She is running unopposed this year, but her term will run for only one year because of a change to the state election calendar to bring local elections into an even-year cycle.
East Hampton Town has approximately 10,000 registered Democrats, 4,000 registered Republicans, and 6,000 “blanks.” There is no longer an Independence Party on the ballot in New York State.
“I never wanted to be town supervisor unless I was welcomed,” Mr. Larsen said Friday night. “I soon realized that with the town supervisor in office now, we could not come to any agreement during negotiations and things were done behind my back. Long story short, I didn’t want to take on something that would affect the relationship between the town and the village, but it could not be worse than it is right now.”
In his speech, he cited Jeff Bragman’s loss to the incumbent, Peter Van Scoyoc, in the 2021 Democratic primary for supervisor. Mr. Larsen argued that the town was in better shape with Supervisor Van Scoyoc and yet, Mr. Bragman lost the primary by only 238 votes. (Mr. Bragman ultimately ran in the general election on the Independence Party line, losing by 1,280 votes.)
“We have the 238 votes in this room,” Mr. Larsen said Friday. “We can win this and take town politics back and make it better for everybody.” In a conversation yesterday morning, Mr. Larsen said he is attempting to expand the Democratic party by bringing in the “blanks.”
The East Hampton Town Democratic Committee will officially choose its candidate for town supervisor in the November 2026 race at its convention in January.
“There is a screening process before the convention and everyone is welcome to screen with the committee,” Anna Skrenta, the committee’s chairwoman, said in a Tuesday text. “The final decision at the convention is based on a democratic process where all committee members vote for their preferred candidate. This process is very important to me and all the committee members, and we pride ourselves on being fair, open, and transparent every step of the way.”
Mr. Larsen said he expected to screen with the Democrats early in 2026, “but Anna conveyed they’re not going to choose me, so I’m preparing to run a primary against whoever they pick.”
Jay Schneiderman, who was Southampton Town supervisor for eight years until he termed out in 2023, and was East Hampton Town supervisor from 2000 until the end of 2003, has also been rumored as a candidate. In a text at the end of September he dismissed the rumor as “just people talking.”
“Our town employees are getting beaten down,” Mr. Larsen said to his supporters Friday night. “There’s no employee retention, and no employee recruitment. It’s an absolute mess. That’s why I’ve been meeting with everybody. It is so important. There are 10,000 registered Democrats in the town, whether you like it or don’t like it. What I don’t like is the extreme left and the extreme right. . . . I just think we can do this, but if you want to be in this game, you have to register as a Democrat.”
Mr. Larsen was endorsed by town Republicans in an unsuccessful bid for a town board seat in 2017, but “I have never been a registered Republican and I have never voted as a Republican,” he said yesterday. He has been registered as a blank for most of his voting life, but joined the Independence Party in 2016 and then became a Democrat in 2019.
Brad Billet, the executive director of the East Hampton Village Foundation, spoke after the mayor on Friday night and urged the audience to write him in on this November’s ballot, even though he is not running this year. “It would be great if we can send a message. I am sure with new leadership in the town we can make it the envy of any town in the United States.”
When asked to respond on Mayor Larsen’s leaked announcement, Ms. Burke-Gonzalez sent a press release including endorsements for the 2025 and 2026 elections from State Assemblyman Tommy John Schiavoni, Suffolk County Legislator Ann Welker, Sag Harbor Mayor Tom Gardella, the Long Island Federation of Labor, the Sierra Club, and the New York League of Conservation Voters.
“These are the people who show up every day to serve our community, who work together to protect our environment, support working families, and strengthen the place we all call home. They know how I lead, with respect, transparency, and a focus on results,” Ms. Burke-Gonzalez wrote. “I don’t divide people; I bring them together. Progress doesn’t come from conflict; it comes from collaboration, listening, and keeping our residents at the heart of every decision.”
