Politics & Government

Two Party System in Hempstead? Perhaps Not

Letter to the editor from West Hempstead resident Bob Rabey.

Editor's Note: The following letter to the editor was submitted by Bob Rabey, Former president of the West Hempstead Civic Association.

For decades the Town of Hempstead has boasted the Republican Party as its leadership. At times, residents have been up in arms, demanding change. Note that I say “residents” and not “voters." For it seems that every Election Day, the “same ‘old” get right back in. 

How can this be? After checking with the board of elections, I found that there are registered opponents from other parties, yet where are the campaign signs telling the general population who’s running? All the major thoroughfares are covered in signs, but just Republican. Not a single mention of anyone else seeking office.

Just for the heck of it, I contacted the parties of these registered opponents, and inquired why they had no advertising of their selected frontrunners. To my surprise, their response was to tell me about their candidates, but never answered my question about advertising.

Find out what's happening in Malverne-Lynbrookwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

My next step, again just for my own curiosity, was to question some of the residents themselves, mainly to find out if anyone besides me was curious. My questions were simple. Are they satisfied with the leadership now in place? Some didn’t care either way and had no real comment. The ones that did, wanted change, yet had no idea of “who".

 In still another surprising turn, most knew who the supervisor was, yet no idea of who anyone else in the leadership was. Asking if they had noticed the campaign signs around town, all responded “Yes, it’s covered in signs.” I inquired if they had noticed any signs other then Republican? All responded “No”. I then asked if they were registered voters, and if they regularly voted. I was amazed to learn that only a small percentage actually took the time to vote! Most felt that their vote meant nothing, so why bother.

Find out what's happening in Malverne-Lynbrookwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

So is there a two party system in the Town of Hempstead? The answer seems to be “yes”, a very large and strong one, and a very small and weak one.


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here