Monica Martinez's Historic Progressive Rise in New York

On January 12th, 2019, a diverse crowd of Long Island residents poured into Brentwood High School to celebrate the ascendancy of one of the most vocal progressives of the Suffolk County Legislature to the New York State Senate. Major players in the Democratic Party were present such as Governor Andrew Cuomo, Sen. Chuck Schumer, and the first African American woman to helm the Senate Majority Leadership, Andrea Stewart-Cousins. All of whom congratulated Monica Martinez on her campaign victory. The event was certainly situated for a historic moment. Yet, Martinez moved the auditorium ethos when she brought the crowd’s attention toward how she will seek to serve all New Yorkers of the Third Senatorial District.

She acknowledged the historic victory for many newly elected women breaking glass ceilings in politics this past November. But most notably, she proclaimed, “Today I am calling for a new day of unity for New York.” This had the power to speak to the unique array of sentiments in the room. At the start of the event, there was an overwhelming feeling of uncertainty about the future of America, as many speakers cited the federal government shutdown and Washington divisions — it was palpable once you walked in. Yet, her message was able to unify the entire audience of all different political and cultural stripes. She made her own history with her unifying message.

Speaking on the diversity in the room, there were immigrants from El Salvador holding up their flag with pride, faith-based community leaders, county and town workers, laborers, young people, seniors, and even Brookhaven Republicans such as Supervisor Ed Romaine, Councilman Dan Panico, and others like Suffolk County Legislator Rudy Sunderman (R) who replaced Democrat Kate Browning. All were there to show their support.

During Martinez's speech, she spoke about her past career in education and how her experience teaching and working as an administrator molded her into the current public servant she is today. She explained the need to improve criminal background checks and keep students safe in schools. Most notably, she touched upon the importance of advocating for the voiceless. This not only includes the underprivileged but also animals. One of her major goals is to eliminate puppy mills and the business of buying and selling animals from mills.

In fact, throughout her career in the Suffolk County Legislature, she was best known for speaking up for animals. During a Suffolk County Bar Association conference in 2016 hosted by the Companion Animal Protection Society, she attended to hear ways in which legal scholars advise how lawmakers should move forward to protect dogs. She spoke that day of the importance to remain committed to this issue. Since then, she has worked laboriously with local law enforcement to strengthen the protection of animals who are abused; in addition, the buying and selling of sick animals from puppy stores that get their dogs from mills. However, local law is confined to state policy. Now that she will be entering the State Senate, she will have more power to effectuate legal reform that makes prosecution against abusers swifter and regulation more effective.

Credit to her political success this past election cycle, Monica Martinez deserves more credit for the response she helped lead in reducing gang violence in Legislative District 9. MS-13 has progressively been dealt with since Martinez and then-Police Commissioner Tim Sini worked together to bring criminal gangs to a halt. The national attention concerning Suffolk County has mostly surrounded the rhetoric of President Trump. This has contributed to a tad of obfuscation from mainstream media outlets of the concerted efforts from local political leaders like Martinez. Though she is locally written about and praised for her work in Newsday and other local papers, there has been little national attention on her work in office.

Besides keeping communities safe, she has remained keen on sustaining democratic responsiveness for the people she presides over. Before becoming Senator, she worked to meet the needs of her constituency, which had been lacking before her taking office. With the growing opioid crisis unfolding on Long Island, she has worked to unveil new ways to expand response mechanisms, Naloxone training, and the development of facilities to help those affected. She is hoping to advance this work further and seek to expand healthcare capabilities for the state to deal with this crisis. On this front, she has delivered for her constituency by bringing police and community together, an important model for the nation.

On top of that, she is looking to alleviate the tax burden for working families and ensure the wealthy are paying their fair share. This is part of her reform efforts to reform trust in our government. She clearly understands that people are very aware that elected officials sometimes take advantage of their status in office. That is why she will be advocating for term limits for elected officials and making voting easier. She also supports early voting so that people have more opportunity to vote and make an impact in our democracy.

Martinez is also a key supporter of a woman’s right to choose. She has stood steadfast with other progressives to ensure women do not receive interference from the federal government from that very crucial civil right. This also ties into her emphasis on affordable healthcare. Martinez has cited the cost-burden of healthcare as a major issue that needs to be solved. Having someone who is aiming for reforms like this could lead to needed transformative changes in New York that benefit the less fortunate.

She made sure to emphasize her pledge to labor. The issues of labor are needed in government now more than ever in the post-Janus age. When she mentioned how important the interests of labor meant to her during her speech, the crowd drew with thunderous applause. This speaks to the growing public demand for better worker representation and union rights. It also speaks to how unions feel about Martinez. With growing fear that workers rights could be eroded by the Supreme Court, this was a very necessary acknowledgment.

What seems most important is bringing a spotlight to Monica Martinez in 2019. She has left a successful legacy in Suffolk County and prepares to bring forth another in the New York State Senate. With a now much larger constituency, it’s essential for more media outlets to shed light on her accomplishments as well as follow her on her journey in improving lives for the people of New York. Right now, politics seems extremely divided. The Democratic Party, in particular, needs to rebuild trust. Leaders who are committed to responsive representation for their community like Martinez are an essential component to rebuilding America. There is a broad imperative to improve the connectedness of our communities as well. Through her stated mission to “work together for the betterment of our community,” Martinez is leading in the effort of improving both our community and our politics.