Mineola mayor, GOP North Hempstead council members sue town over new district lines

The Mayor of Mineola Village, along with two Republican North Hempstead council members, have filed a federal complaint against the Town of North Hempstead, asking a judge to invalidate the recently adopted redistricting map as unconstitutional.

The complaint cites concerns that the new lines — redrawn in accordance with the 2020 Census — favor Democrats in future elections and diminishes the power of certain voters in the town.

The suit — filed on Oct. 14 in the Eastern District Court of New York — names as plaintiffs Mineola Mayor Paul Pereira, North Hempstead council members Dennis Walsh and David Adhami, and James McHugh, who served on the town’s Nonpartisan Temporary Redistricting Commission

"This manipulation served to retroactively invalidate the votes of innumerable town residents that cast their votes with the understanding and expectation of the term of office of their chosen representative,” the complaint said. “The net result violates equal protection in the most glaring fashions and flies in the face of state law barring such blatantly partisan gerrymandering.”

The complaint states that the new map created districts that are less compact than they should have been, and it needlessly splits Mineola Village and other areas of the town. The complaint also states that the redistricting “unlawfully swapped districts 4 and 5, which would negatively impact the length" of Adhami’s term.

The maps are expected to take effect in January 2024, according to North Hempstead Town officials.

Timothy F. Hill, of Messina Perillo & Hill LLP, who represents the plaintiffs said: "Ultimately, we view that this was partisan in both procedure and partisan in its product. The changes that were made to the map don't follow redistricting principal."

Town spokesperson Gordon Tepper said that they have not received the complaint. However, he said that the new maps will not impact any council member's term. “Every council member has a four-year term and nobody's term is ending early or being extended longer,” Tepper said.

North Hempstead Supervisor Jennifer DeSena, who voted against the maps, said "North Hempstead residents deserve better than partisan politics when it comes to the redistricting process.”

In June, the Democrats voted 4-3, along party lines, to push through a new district map despite questions from their Republican counterparts about the process and the reconfigured district lines. The map was one of four choices provided by the town’s Nonpartisan Temporary Redistricting Commission. A part of Mineola was taken from Walsh’s 3rd District and added to Councilman Peter Zuckerman’s 2nd District.

Though all districts saw some changes, the 4th and 5th districts saw the largest, as they essentially swapped jurisdictions.

Democratic Councilwoman Veronica Lurvey’s 4th District gained the unincorporated areas of Manhasset Hills, Herricks and Garden City Park, which helped establish the Asian majority-minority district. The new 5th District gained the Plandomes from the 6th District, and the Village of Munsey Park, among other villages.

According to the complaint, the proposed district 4 contains 70% of the existing district 5, and the new district 5 would contain 75% of the core of the current district 4. The complaint states that this switch would allow Lurvey, who was elected to a four-year term beginning in 2020, to serve until 2026. Adhami, who was elected in 2021, would see his term shortened to two years.

The Nassau County Board of Elections is also named as a defendant only for technical reasons.