Brookhaven Politicians Want A Term Extension. Vote NO on Prop 1.

This election day, November 6th, voters in the Town of Brookhaven will have to ask themselves: do I like having the ability to vote every two years on my town's elected officials?

If you answered in the affirmative, then you must flip your ballot and vote NO on Proposal 1, because voting Yes would take away your right to vote in town races every two years, by extending Brookhaven politicians' term of office to four years.

Of course, the politicians who came up with Proposal 1 didn't have the integrity to pose a simple question of term extensions to the voters. They included a deception: term limits.

Most voters support term limits. If a term limit question appeared on the ballot, I would encourage everyone to support that measure. But that's not what is going on here.

The truth is, Brookhaven already has term limits, which voters approved in a 1993 ballot referendum. At the time, Brookhaven also had four-year terms, so the term limits were devised as "three-year terms" or a total of 12 year term limits.

Later, in 2003, voters then supported a referendum that created town council districts, with shortened two-year terms.

The town's politicians immediately started fighting back against the will of the voters. The town attorney even appealed to the NYS Attorney General's office to inquire about the Town of Brookhaven's flexibility in eliminating either the shortened two-year terms, or the twelve-year term limits.

The Attorney General's office sent a letter back, stating that two-year terms were mandatory for all council districts and town board officials, and that it was up to the town to interpret their own term limits law.

Fast forward to 2018. The Brookhaven Town Board decided to invalidate term limits, and put them back on the ballot to bait voters into supporting a term extension for the town's politicians.

In early August, without holding a single public forum to gather input from voters, the Brookhaven Town Board voted unanimously to invalidate term limits and place Toxic Term Extensions, forcing voters to choose between 2-year terms and 12-year term limits. Members of the public who showed up to comment were shouted at, lied to, and intimidated by Brookhaven's politicians.

I would know - the group I lead, Brookhaven Action Network, sent its members to comment that day.

And our experience at Brookhaven Town Hall spurred us into creating the Vote No on Toxic Term Extensions campaign. You might have seen us at your door - we've carried our literature to thousands of voters across Brookhaven.

We're not just talking to one party, either. Despite being a progressive group, we have proudly taken the Vote NO campaign to the doors of Republicans, Conservatives, and Independents, as well as Democrats.

The response has been incredible. People across the political spectrum are disgusted by the idea of the Toxic Term Extensions proposal, and are eager to vote NO.

Even prominent members of the local tea party conservative group contacted us about carrying our literature to Republican doors.

Protecting the public from political schemes is one issue that unites everybody.

And the pressure we have applied to Brookhaven establishment politicians, which includes a Republican super-majority and a lone Democrat, is working.

The best proof of that is the emergence of a shadow campaign: the "Yes To Term Limits" PAC.

Practically overnight, this group popped up and suddenly had tens of thousands of dollars in advertising including robocalls, mailers, lawn signs, and a website.

Nobody knows who is funding it (well, we can guess: Brookhaven GOP Chairman Jesse Garcia is all over social media praising them). Their address is a PO Box. There are no names or faces attached to the campaign - no volunteers, and they haven't been to anyone's door.

Now contrast that with the Brookhaven Action Network. You might agree or disagree with our political philosophy, but if you go to our Facebook page, you can see exactly who we are. Our address is my home address (come by and get some candy tomorrow!).

Our executive board are names you know. We've talked to you and your neighbors. I'm a father of two, a homeowner from Selden who regularly attends his school board meetings. Two of our other executive members are veterans of foreign wars. Another member ran for Town Highway Superintendent. Another is a student activist. Our names and faces are visible in the pictures we post while knocking on neighborhood doors to speak with real people.

We've had disagreements on political issues like all good neighbors do, but we are vested. And we give a crap. We're not some shadow group spending a small fortune to pump the airwaves with misleading messages.

The "Yes on Term Limits" shadow money PAC isn't even mentioning that term limits are already law, and not a single word about the four-year term extensions!

On every piece of Brookhaven Action Network literature for Vote NO, we included the exact wording that will appear on the back of your ballot, and explained both the term limits issue and the term extensions, so that voters can make an informed decision.

In case we haven't been to your door, here is Proposal 1 as it will appear on your ballot.

There is a reason why Republican and Democratic voters alike are supporting our Vote NO campaign. It's the same reason why they came together to Vote NO on the 2017 Constitutional Convention. Because people know a scheme when they see one.

This isn't about Left or Right, Conservative or Progressive. It's about politicians and corrupt shadow money versus real people. Them versus Us.

Brookhaven politicians never expected anyone to put up a fight. Well, they're in a street fight now. And the Brookhaven Action Network needs your help, and your vote.

If you don't want politicians taking away our ability to vote every two years on elected officials, flip your ballot and VOTE NO.

Volunteer with BAN's Vote No campaign
Read the Toxic Term Extensions FAQ