In an uncommon local political event that will shape the immediate future of East Hampton Town’s Democratic Party, Democratic voters are faced this month with a choice for the two committee members in each of the town’s 19 election districts.
The upheaval is a consequence of a hard-fought primary race between incumbent Town Supervisor Kathee Burke-Gonzalez and her challenger, East Hampton Village Mayor Jerry Larsen. The winner will get the Democratic line on the November ballot and in all likelihood the supervisor’s seat come Jan. 1, since there is no Republican candidate. When Mr. Larsen was spurned by the current Democratic Committee, which overwhelmingly chose the incumbent to once again represent the party, he handpicked 38 of his own candidates to run against the current committee members.
So when registered Democrats choose their candidate for supervisor, they will also choose two people to represent their election district on the Democratic Committee. In most cases, four people are running for the two spots; voters only weigh in on the candidates in their own district, not the full slate.
While most attention has been paid to the primary for town supervisor, there are a number of colorful Democratic Committee races. One is an attempt by Rona Klopman to unseat Anna Skrenta, the committee’s current chairwoman.
“I believe party members are those who should live, work, and volunteer in giving back to our community,” Ms. Klopman said in a text. “Currently, the Democratic Committee chair has commented that she is a part-timer and ‘If you don’t like it, you don’t have to vote for her.’ It’s rather arrogant for a chair to take that position.”
“I’m proud of our team for maintaining a positive campaign that stands in stark contrast to Jerry Larsen’s twisted facts and nonstop attacks, a strategy taken to the extreme by my opponent, Rona Klopman, with her obsessive trolling of our Facebook posts,” Ms. Skrenta texted. “Rona has targeted me relentlessly for being a part-time resident of East Hampton. For the record, I may live here part time, but the work I do on behalf of our Democratic community is absolutely full time.”
On Mr. Larsen’s slate are his wife, Lisa Larsen (District 5), his deputy mayor, Chris Minardi (District 5), a village trustee, Jason Tuma (District 18), and the wives of three members of his administration: Sarah Minardi (District 16), a real estate broker and East Hampton School Board member; Jenny Lilja Baladron (District 15), wife of the village administrator, Marcos Baladron, and Trisha Notel Erickson (District 15), an East Hampton physical education teacher and wife of Jeffrey Erickson, the village police chief.
Over on Ms. Burke-Gonzalez’s slate is her husband, Joe Gonzalez (District 5), running against Ms. Larsen.
A quick glance at the election district map and one is left wondering what drunken politician dreamed it up. The districts are not in sequential order, and they vary in shape, area, population, and influence. (See map.) Districts 6, 10, 18, and 19 are in Montauk. In Amagansett are Districts 3 and 12. Districts 4, 9, 15, and 17 are in Springs. In Northwest is District 16. Districts 1, 5, 8, 11, 13, and 14 are in East Hampton; District 2 is in Sag Harbor, and District 7 is in Wainscott.
During conventions, each committee member represents the Democratic voters in their district. They’re allotted a number of votes equal to half of the Democratic votes cast in their election district for the Democratic candidate in the last gubernatorial election.
Districts 16, 8, and 2 carry the most electoral weight, and are thus important for how they could sway the outcome of the next convention. Tim Garneau and Marilyn Van Scoyoc are on the committee’s slate in District 15; Jonathan Tarbet and Ms. Minardi are on Mr. Larsen’s slate. In District 8 it’s Jerry Mulligan and Juan Roldan for Ms. Burke-Gonazlez vs. David Gruber and Kelly Anderson for Mr. Larsen. District 2 is a race between Peter Ginna and Michael Koegler for Ms. Burke-Gonazalez vs. Joan McGivern and Hanna Rosario for Mr. Larsen.
The current Democratic committee has criticized many of Mr. Larsen’s candidates. Four (Jim Grimes, Carroll Logie, Ms. Notel Erickson and Mr. Tuma) switched their registration from Republican and 13 others recently changed their registration to Democrat to vote in the election and run on the mayor’s committee slate.
Mr. Grimes is perhaps the best known “ex-Republican” of the group, a town trustee who has been backed by both parties in his election bids. He and Frank Tuma are on Mr. Larsen’s slate in District 10 in Montauk, where they face the husband-and-wife team of Andy Harris and Sally Richardson.
