Rudolph A. Sunderman | General Election - Nov. 7, 2017

Sunderman says the next legislator has to be more concerned about people, not politics. He said quality of life, addressing the opioid epidemic and reducing zombie homes have to be the priorities. He said the county has to have a balanced budget. As a fire commissioner, he said, he reduced district taxes by 23 percent by “rolling up our sleeves and looking at expenses.” He said a sewer district is important for the future of local waterways. Sunderman said the county has to reduce crime by putting more police on the street. “Making people feel safer in the 3rd District is what it’s all about,” he said.

Rudolph Sunderman, making his first run for the county legislature, has the Republican, Conservative, Independence and Reform party lines. Sunderman, 48, of Mastic, graduated from William Floyd High School and has been district manager of the Centereach Fire District for eight years. A volunteer firefighter for 35 years, he served five years as chief of the Mastic Fire Department, then was elected to two five-year terms as a fire district commissioner. For the past three years, he returned to the post of fire chief. He also is an instructor at the Suffolk Fire Academy. He is married and has four children.