Nassau County Comptroller George Maragos didn’t waste any time proving he’s a Democrat after jumping the Republican ship, with he and his wife donating $5,400 to the campaign of Presidential candidate Hillary Clinton.
The couple didn’t want for the news to show up in public filings, instead putting out the news themselves as he is seizing on his change of parties to run for county executive in New York next year, the newspaper Newsday reported.
Maragos said he and his wife donated the money on Sept. 20 and five days later gave another $250 to the Hempstead Democratic Committee, the paper said.
The contributions were volunteered after Newsday reported that Maragos, despite long-standing disputes with Nassau GOP leaders, donated to the Republicans and into this spring before deciding to change parties.
Campaign finance records showed that Maragos hadn’t given money to any Democratic candidates or committees over that time with the contributions to Hillary and the Hempstead committee the first to his new-found cause.
Maragos announced his party switch late last month, saying he had broken with local Republicans over budget issues.
“For years, I have been at odds with the Republican Committee over issues of fiscal responsibility, borrowing, waste, and trust in government. I have been at odds over raising the minimum wage, and increased opportunities for women, minorities and veterans. Over time, I found that my values have become more aligned with the Democratic Party,” he said then.
To reassure the voters who elected him, he said, “My party change will have NO impact on my responsibilities as Comptroller. I will continue to run the office in an independent and bipartisan manner, as I have done in the past six years.”
Maragos continued, “We are all aware that Nassau County faces significant financial challenges, multiple corruption allegations, weak economic growth, and a costly and unfair tax assessment system, We CANNOT continue to borrow in order to pay the bills, defer paying bills, or hit our residents with BIG fees.”
“Nassau County can do better! We need to restore trust in government, strengthen public health and safety, eliminate waste, balance the budget without borrowing, and finally fix the broken tax assessment system which is costing tax payers nearly $100M/ per year resulting in higher taxes for many.”
He also announced his run for Nassau County Executive, saying, “In order to address these pressing issues, today, I am announcing that I will be seeking the Democratic Party nomination for Nassau County Executive. As a two term Comptroller, I have intimate knowledge of the challenges facing our government, 35 years of proven senior management experience, and the integrity to deal with the issues facing Nassau County.”
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