Long Island ‘Red Tsunami’ Signals Rejection of New York’s Bail Reform

Nassau’s new District Attorney Anne Donnelly!
Twitter/Assemblyman Ed Ra
Nick Gilbertson

Republicans came away with significant victories on Long Island as the election of Republican district attorneys in Nassau and Suffolk Counties signals a repudiation of the state’s contentious bail reform law.

In Nassau County’s district attorney race, Republican candidate Anne Donnelly beat Democrat State Sen. Todd D. Kaminsky by a margin of 155,554 to 102,666, according to unofficial election results from Nassau County’s website. Donnelly, a career local prosecutor, secured 60 percent of the vote as opposed to Kaminsky’s 40 percent.

Kaminsky voted for the bail reform law that did away with cash bail for defendants facing “many misdemeanor and ‘non-violent felony’ crimes,” according to the New York Post.

Democrats made adjustments to the law after public outcry about the reforms and disapproval from law enforcement as suspects and defendants carried out alleged crimes immediately after being released, according to the Post.

One man was arrested three times in one day in February of 2020 due to the law, Breitbart News reported.

Donnelly’s campaign dubbed Kaminsky “Turn ‘Em Loose’ Todd” for his support of the law, according to the New York Post.

“Thank you for caring enough about Nassau County to want to keep it safe, and thanks for backing the candidate who backs the blue,” Donnelly said in her victory speech, according to News 12 Long Island. 

“The voters are sending a message. Safety first. Our children and families come first,” Donnelly said in an early Wednesday interview, according to the Post. 

Republicans have taken home the Suffolk County district attorney election as well, another race in which bail reform was a forefront issue, the Post reports. Republican Ray Tierney toppled Democrat incumbent Tim Sini by a margin of 145,933 to 109,060, according to the New York Post. Tierney secured 57 percent of the vote, while Sini garnered 43 percent, the Post reports.

Sini conceded to Tierney on Tuesday night, according to News 12 Connecticut.

“I will fight every day to keep the citizens of Suffolk County safe,” said Tierney in his victory speech, according to the outlet.

In Nassau County’s executive race, Republican candidate Bruce A. Blakeman leads Democrat incumbent Laura Curran by a margin of 135,842 to 124,008, according to unofficial election results from Nassau County’s website. Blakeman has garnered 52 percent of the vote, while Curran corralled 48 percent.

Blakeman declared victory on Tuesday night according to ABC New York, though Curran stated overnight that she is not yet conceding.

“There are many thousands of absentee ballots that still must be counted, with more coming in,” she said, according to ABC New York. “This is not over, and we must trust the process.”

Nassau County saw another Republican victory in the county election for comptroller. Former State Sen. Elaine Phillips (R) secured 154,787 votes beating Democratic candidate Ryan Cronin who earned 99,811 votes according to unofficial election results from Nassau County’s website.

“It was not a particularly good night,” said Nassau County Democratic leader Jay Jacobs, according to the New York Post.

“Republicans are always very good at scaring voters,” Jacobs stated according to the Post. “In this case, they used bail reform to mislead the voters and scare the voters.”

“Long Island is very much like the rest of the country: There was a red wave,” Jacobs said according to the New York Times. “Republicans were energized because they’re angry and they’re unhappy with the direction of the country. We saw that in polls. Democrats are disheartened and unenthusiastic.”

The Post reports Dean of Hofstra University’s National Center for Suburban Studies Lawrence Levy stated, “Donald Trump is no longer on the ballot.”

“This is a red tsunami. It’s a complete wipeout. This is a sharp repudiation of the Democratic Party,” he added according to the outlet.

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