Southampton Town special election on Tuesday for Tommy John Schiavoni's former seat

A special election on Tuesday to fill a vacancy on the Southampton Town Board pits a Democratic lawyer against a Republican former councilman in a contest centered on housing issues.

Democrat John J. Leonard, 55, and Republican Richard Martel, 65, both of Hampton Bays, are vying to succeed Democrat Tommy John Schiavoni after his election in November to the New York State Assembly.

The victor in Tuesday’s election will serve the remainder of Schiavoni’s term, which expires Dec. 31. Both Leonard and Martel said they will seek a full four-year term in the general election on Nov. 4.

Democrats now hold a 3-1 majority on the town board.

Both candidates said they are focused on development, affordability and quality of life issues in Southampton Town.

Leonard said he'd foster a more inclusive and less "toxic" dialogue on townwide issues.

"There is a majority that wants to see things — wants to see progress made," he said in an interview. "I could pull people out of the shadows who were afraid to speak before."

Martel, who served on the town board from 2020 through 2023, said he'd "hit the ground running" and push to unite board members on key issues. "We all have similar ideas; usually we’re not far off from each other," he said in an interview. "Fighting in public is not good for anybody."

Voters in this special election are the first in Suffolk to cast their ballots on new touch screen machines being tested by the Board of Elections under a pilot program. The Suffolk County Legislature earlier this month approved $35 million to the board for the new voting machines. The agency has yet to determine which system it will purchase, said John Alberts, the board's Democratic commissioner, in an email.

Housing crisis a key issue

Martel served one term on the town board but lost his reelection bid in 2023. He is running on the Republican and Conservative ballot lines. Martel owns Skidmore’s Sports & Styles, a sporting goods and surf shop in Hampton Bays. He suggested the town tap into its Community Housing Fund to build new apartments and fund down payment assistance for new homebuyers. 

“The kids are paying a lot of money for rent these days, and if you could just give them a little assistance and turn that into home ownership — I think we can accomplish that," Martel said.

Easing traffic is another priority, and Martel said he would work with the town’s highway superintendent to address backups on County Road 39. He said he favors “smart” development, citing the building trades as a “driving force” in the local economy.

“It just can’t be ‘build as big or as high as you want,’” Martel said. “We have to keep it in character with the hamlets that it’s being built in.”

Leonard is a civil attorney who maintains a private practice in Hampton Bays and is running on the Democratic and Working Families lines. He received a law degree from New York Law School in 2001 and was admitted to the bar the following year. 

Leonard serves on Southampton Town's zoning board and volunteers with the East End Regional Intervention Court, a drug-treatment program that helps defendants get charges reduced. He co-founded the Hampton Bays Alliance, a civic group that advocates for revitalization in the hamlet.

Leonard said the housing crisis is a top issue and suggested repurposing abandoned buildings and promoting accessory apartments. “People who are servicing our homes, people who are working in our businesses, people who work at the hospital, in our schools — they can’t afford to live here,” he said.

When Leonard lived in California, the state court system suspended his law license over professional conduct violations, according to New York State appellate court records, which provide details about the discipline.

The California bar ordered his license suspended in 2011 and 2013, and New York issued reciprocal suspensions, the records show. The California bar cited his failure to appear in court on behalf of his client and misappropriation of $400 in client fees, the records show. Leonard said in an interview it was an “unfortunate occurrence” and that he struggled with depression at the time. “I dropped the ball on a few of my clients' cases and didn’t perform as I was supposed to,” he told Newsday. “My conduct since moving here in 2012 shows that those issues are resolved.”

He said while the issue has been used against him on the campaign trail, he remains dedicated to the community. “People are not irredeemable,” he said. New York court records show he is listed as an active attorney in New York State and has been inactive in California since 2016.

Early voting continues through Sunday at St. Mark’s Episcopal Church in Westhampton and the student center at Stony Brook Southampton. Early voting runs from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday.

Voting on Tuesday runs from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. at standard Southampton polling sites.

With Joe Werkmeister