How lucky are the residents of Southampton Township that John Leonard has thrown his hat in the ring to run for Town Board.
I met John when he came before the Southampton Town Democratic Committee’s screening committee, of which I am a member, along with many wonderful candidates seeking to be the endorsed Democrat to run in the March 18 special election. This special election is necessitated because Councilman Tommy John Schiavoni was elected to the New York State Assembly last fall. We wish him well and know he will do an outstanding job representing us in Albany, just as he did representing us as a councilman.
It was clear to all of us in the screening interview that John Leonard is the best candidate to fill Tommy John’s shoes on the Town Board.
If I lived in Hampton Bays, I would have been more familiar with John’s extensive commitment to community service. His private legal practice is in Hampton Bays, and he dedicates a substantial amount of his time and efforts to pro bono work, particularly in the area of domestic violence. In interviews, John has stated that he was attracted to helping victims and survivors of domestic violence after representing a close relative affected by it. It gave him a great appreciation for the cases and clients and he found the work fulfilling. For this work, in 2018, he was named the Suffolk County Bar Association’s pro bono attorney of the month.
But his dedication to his Hampton Bays community has gone even further with the founding in 2024 of the Hampton Bays Alliance, a civic association. Hosting meetings once a month, the Alliance brings together elected officials and members of the community in an open and welcoming space to discuss issues of importance to the community, particularly regarding development and revitalization that will impact Hampton Bays today and for generations to come. John is also on the board of Hampton Bays Rotary.
John’s mission for helping others includes all of Southampton Township, through his work on the Town of Southampton Zoning Board of Appeals and the East End Regional Intervention Court, where he is a Drug Court team member and criminal defense attorney. Previously, he was also a member of the Sag Harbor Chamber of Commerce.
The Southampton Democrat Committee screening process is open to anyone, and we were privileged to interview many highly qualified candidates. But there was no question that John’s legal expertise, his community service experience, his passion and dedication to helping others, his love of the East End, made it an easy decision to choose him as our endorsed Democratic candidate for the Town Board.
Barbara Weber-Floyd
Westhampton Beach
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