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Laura Gillen

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Laura Gillen
Member-elect of the U.S. House of Representatives
from New York's 4th district
Assuming office
January 3, 2025
SucceedingAnthony D'Esposito
Town Supervisor of Hempstead
In office
2018–2019
Preceded byAnthony Santino
Succeeded byDonald Clavin
Personal details
Born1969 (age 54–55)
Baldwin, New York, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
EducationGeorgetown University (BA)
New York University (JD)

Laura Gillen (born 1969) is an American politician and attorney who is a member-elect of the United States House of Representatives for New York's 4th congressional district.[1] A Democrat, she previously served as the Town Supervisor of Hempstead, New York.[2]

Early life and career

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Gillen was born in Baldwin, New York and has lived nearly her entire life in Rockville Centre. She received her undergraduate degree in Political Science and Government from Georgetown University, and her Juris Doctor degree from the New York University School of Law.

Following her graduation, she practiced law at the New York City law firm Cahill Gordon in a securities regulation, defamation, and employment and intellectual property lawyer. Gillen participated in the firm's pro bono program, assisting victims of domestic violence. She then moved back to Long Island and joined the Westerman Ball law firm.[citation needed]

Political career

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In 2017, Gillen narrowly defeated incumbent Anthony J. Santino for Hempstead Town Supervisor, being the first woman and the first Democrat in 100 years to lead the Republican-dominated Town of Hempstead.[3] In the 2017 general election Gillen was outspent by $1.2M dollars and won by a margin of 2,268 votes.[3] She was the first Democrat in more than a century to be elected for the position.[4]

During her 2017 campaign for Supervisor, Gillen criticized Santino's treatment of fellow Town Board members Bruce Blakeman and Erin King-Sweeney.[5] The two town board members took issue to a Santino proposal to restrict board members from taking more than $125,000 in outside income. While Santino denied it, the two attorneys argued that it was an attempt to throw them off the board.[6] Blakeman would later cross party lines to endorse Gillen in October, saying “I am confident in her. I think she has the right balance of confidence, yet she has humility.”[7] Gillen's 2017 campaign centered around transparency, and putting an end to the slew of patronage jobs in the Town of Hempstead.[6]

In May 2018, Gillen released the town's first ever five year capital plan, providing a road map for future town development. The plan included rehabilitation of a town 311 facility, reopening of a water testing lab, $160M in road resurfacing initiatives, upgrades to park facilities and drainage infrastructure.[8] In an attempt to offer greater transparency in the town, Gillen required the online posting of town contracts and established a law to require bidding on all professional services contracts of more than $10,000.[9]

U.S. Congress

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2022 congressional campaign

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In 2022, she ran for the New York's 4th congressional district in 2022 United States House of Representatives elections, a seat vacated by incumbent Rep. Kathleen Rice.[10] She won the primary[11] but lost the general election to Anthony D'Esposito in an upset. The district represents nearly all of the Town of Hempstead and the City of Long Beach in Nassau County.

2024 congressional campaign

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Gillen announced she would run against D'Esposito again in 2024. She narrowly defeated him in the general election, flipping the seat.[1] During her campaign, she said she opposed the implementation of congestion pricing in the most congested, polluted parts of Manhattan.[12]

References

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  1. ^ a b Ngo, Emily; Beeferman, Jason (November 7, 2024). "Laura Gillen defeats Rep. Anthony D'Esposito in heated NY rematch focused on border security". Politico. Retrieved November 8, 2024.
  2. ^ Smollins, Mike (February 24, 2022). "Laura Gillen announces campaign for Congress in 4th District". Herald Community Newspapers. Archived from the original on 2022-02-26. Retrieved 2022-03-03.
  3. ^ a b Dazio, Stefanie; Asbury, John (November 8, 2017). "Surprise win for Democrats in Hempstead supervisor race". Newsday. Archived from the original on 2021-03-22.
  4. ^ Wang, Vivian (November 13, 2019). "Rep. Peter King's Exit Highlights the G.O.P.'s Suburban Problem". The New York Times.
  5. ^ "Laura Gillen Responds To Supervisor Santino's State Of The Town". Long Island Weekly. 2017-09-13. Retrieved 2022-03-16.
  6. ^ a b "Newsday endorses Gillen for Hempstead supervisor". Newsday. October 29, 2017. Archived from the original on 2017-10-30. Retrieved 2022-03-16.
  7. ^ Stieglitz, Brian (October 27, 2017). "Blakeman crosses party lines, endorses Gillen for town supervisor". Herald Community Newspapers. Retrieved 2022-03-16.
  8. ^ Dazio, Stefanie (May 6, 2018). "Town's capital plan includes 311 system". Newsday. Archived from the original on 2022-01-24. Retrieved 2022-03-16.
  9. ^ "Newsday endorses Gillen for Hempstead supervisor". Newsday. October 12, 2019. Archived from the original on 2022-03-16. Retrieved 2022-03-16.
  10. ^ Smollins, Mike (March 3, 2022). "Rockville Centre's Laura Gillen discusses her run for Congress". LI Herald. Archived from the original on 2022-03-03.
  11. ^ "Winners in Long Island's primaries look forward to November election". News 12 Long Island. August 24, 2022.
  12. ^ Brosnan, Erica (November 8, 2024). "Newly elected congresswoman vows to work across aisle". ny1.com.
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