Michael Venditto

Venditto said Republican control of the State Senate is important for Long Islanders to prevent Democrats from diverting resources, such as school aid, to New York City. “Maintaining a Republican majority with all that we’ve been able to achieve will help people economically during these very tough times,” Venditto said. He also wants to enact legislation to give municipalities control over where sex offenders can live after a state court ruling last year that said state law trumped local laws. “We want to see local control,” Venditto said, adding that some local laws had been more restrictive. He said he also wants to require food companies to label genetically modified food. “Residents have a right to know what is in their food.”

Venditto, 35, of Massapequa, is running on the Republican, Conservative, Independence, Tax Revolt and Reform lines. He was elected to the State Senate in 2014, where he is the chair of the consumer protection committee. Before holding state office, he served in the Nassau County Legislature, to which he was elected in a special election in 2012. He previously served as deputy town attorney for the Town of Hempstead and counsel to the Hempstead Town Board. Venditto, son of Oyster Bay Town Supervisor John Venditto, is a graduate of Farmingdale High School. He graduated received a bachelor’s degree from Hofstra University and a law degree from St. John’s University.