With less than two months before the special election to fill the seat covering Long Island’s North Shore and the northeast corner of Queens, Democratic candidate Tom Suozzi flew to Israel on a solidarity visit as he seeks to regain his former seat.
“To have another pro-Israel Republican doesn’t really accomplish much,” he told reporters last Friday from Jerusalem. “What you need are more pro-Israel Democrats, and if you want support of Israel to remain bipartisan in the United States of America.”
His visit followed the Republicans choosing Nassau Legislator Melessa Mazi Pilip as their pick for the February 13 special election. The Ethiopian-born veteran of the Israeli Army was first elected to public office in 2021, ousting a longtime Democratic incumbent in the district covering Great Neck and Manhasset.
For Pilip, support for Israel is personal, as the Jewish state rescued her family in Operation Solomon, the 1991 airlift that rescued Ethiopian Jews fleeing civil war and famine. She served in the Israeli military, and she has family members fighting against Hamas in Gaza.
Suozzi was raised with an interest in politics from birth, as his father and uncle both served as mayor of Glen Cove. Following careers in accounting and law, he followed them to public office. Running in a historically Republican county, he made history in 2002 with his election as County Executive, where he served for two terms. He was elected to Congress in 2018, where he built his reputation as the vice-chair of the bipartisan Problem Solvers Caucus. Had he not chosen to run in a primary against Gov. Kathy Hochul in 2022, he likely would have kept his seat and nobody would have known about George Santos.
In his run to retake the seat, Suozzi’s slogan of “Let’s Fix This” speaks of restoring the district’s reputation that made it a national laughingstock with allegations of personal and financial fraud by Santos. Having been chosen by Nassau Democratic Chair Jay Jacobs and his Queens counterpart Rep. Greg Meeks, he is promoted as the experienced centrist whose positions on domestic and foreign policy are well-known. In a recent interview on WNYC, Meeks said that Pilip’s views are not known on most issues, aside from her support of Israel and her personal story as an immigrant success story.
On his visit to the Jewish state, he visited charred ruins in Kfar Aza, met with military spokesman Col. Jonathan Conricus, and the parents of an oleh from his district who was kidnapped by Hamas on October 7.
“I spent some time speaking with Ronen and Orna Neutra of Plainview. Their 22-year-old son, Omer Neutra, is being held hostage by Hamas,” he said. “I can’t imagine if I was that helpless.” He spoke of Neutra as a graduate of the Solomon Schechter School in his district and a Knicks fan. He also met with an injured soldier who grew up in Great Neck.
“Coming here, and other people coming here, is an important way to bring attention,” he said. When asked whether President Biden is supportive enough of Israel’s war effort, Suozzi noted his visit to Israel and the positioning of warships in the Mediterranean to discourage Russian and Iranian involvement in the war.
He argued that while the “Squad” is very visible and vocal, they are a minority among Democrats and the party’s senior lawmakers are committed to the release of hostages and defeating Hamas. “People who are against Israel are getting a lot of press and wrecking the brand. What you need are outspoken pro-Israel Democrats for bipartisan support. We can’t lose that.”
By Sergey Kadinsky
