Romaine Earns GOP Nod in Brookhaven Supe Race

One week after Suffolk County Legislator Ed Romaine announced he was in the race for Brookhaven Supervisor, he said Modnay he had secured support of the Republican party.

The former Suffolk County clerk will face Democrat Brian Beedenbender, the chief of staff of current Supervisor Mark Lesko, on Nov. 6. Lesko to take a job leading Accelerate Long Island.

The Brookhaven Town Republican Committee's executive committe made the decision unanimously at the committee's headquarters in Medford on Monday evening.

In an interview with Patch last week, Romaine, a Center Moriches resident, said the decision to leave his current post was a tough one, though one he made with a couple of factors in mind.

"First, Brookhaven has huge fiscal problems and would be a challenge. Second, my son - he was a councilman, and cared deeply about the town," Romaine said, referring to his son Keith, who died at the age of 36 during his tenure as a Brookhaven councilman.

Beedenbender, 32, has served as Lesko's chief of staff since the beginning of 2010. He previously served one term in the county legislature before losing a race to Legis. Tom Muratore, R-Ronkonkoma.