The same questions were asked to both candidates running for the 16th Legislative District. Incumbent Judy Jacobs is being challenged by Joseph Girardi.

Election Day is Nov. 6.

Q: Where do you reside and how long have you lived there?

A: I have lived with my wife Donna, and my children Caitlyn, Nicholas, and Alexandra, at our home located in Syosset for the past nine years.

Q: What is your profession and family information?

A: I am an attorney with offices in Syosset and in Jamaica, Queens. My main area of practice consists of defending criminal and traffic cases. Occasionally, I handle residential real estate matters, and I also represent the Chiller Theatre Horror Convention. For 31/2 years, I served as an Assistant District Attorney.

I graduated from Oceanside High School in 1977, graduated from SUNY at Oneonta in 1981, and graduated from Georgetown Law School in 1984. My hobbies include cooking and playing guitar.

I have served on the Syosset Baseball Association Board of Directors for 8 years. I have also served as a baseball manager, coach, sponsor and team chaperone on various Little League and Youth Travel baseball teams for 11 years.

I am a member of the North Shore Community Church located in Oyster Bay for the past 9 years. I am involved in the Children's Communion Program, and the food pantry program that distributes food and groceries to needy families all along the north shore of Nassau and Suffolk County.

Q: What party lines are you currently running on?

A: I am running on the Republican and Conservative Party lines.

Q: What are your reasons for running?

A: My reasons for running are because I want to stop the outrageous annual reassessment that has created huge school and property taxes for the homeowners of Nassau County.

I will vote against annual reassessment. I will also work for tax cuts by eliminating the millions and millions of dollars in waste and unnecessary social programs that have ballooned the already over bloated Nassau County budget, since the democrats took over.

I will vote for a freeze on all county hiring (other than law enforcement). I will vote for a freeze on all county wages. I will vote to cut funding for the arts, music, entertainment, theatre and museums. I will vote to cut any and all subsidies to low cost housing. I will vote to eliminate the use of county cars by county employees. I will vigorously oppose county contracts and work being doled out to non-county companies. I will vote to let job attrition reduce the size of the county workforce, and then, work to consolidate departments and workloads. I will vote to fire all of the 242 political patronage positions that the Democrats have added to the County payroll - at the cost of over $20 million per year - since 2001. We don't need them.

I will personally go through the entire budget - line by line - and root out waste and unnecessary spending.

I have no political ties or obligations. I am free to vote for, and do, what is right for the voters in my district. Period. Therefore, I don't need anything from anyone. I don't have to answer to anyone for anything. I intend to be a watchdog on the current County Executive - not a rubber stamp.

Q: If elected, what are your goals for the 16th Legislative District? Which would you tackle first?

A: My main goals are to cut taxes, and then, to replace the 300 police officers that we have lost since 2001. Also, my goal is to win the election, cut taxes, cut waste, restore the police force, and then to get on with my life and give someone else a turn. The first priority of government is to protect the citizenry. Our current police force is dangerously understaffed - despite a growing county population.

Q: What is your favorite aspect of the 16th Legislative District?

A: My favorite aspects of the 16th District are the beautiful ball parks that are maintained by the Town of Oyster Bay, the wide diversity in restaurants, food markets and shopping choices that exist here, and finally, the wonderful people that I have gotten to know and become friends and neighbors with over the past 9 years.

Q: Have you ever run for political office before? Were you successful?

A: In 2005 I ran against my current opponent for the same position - as legislator for the 16th Election District. And, although I got a higher percentage of the vote than anyone had ever gotten against her - I still lost. but I will keep on fighting until I win this seat.

Q: Where do you reside and how long have you lived there?

A: I have lived in Woodbury since 1967.

Q: What is your profession and family information?

A: I attended Hunter College and received my B.A. in early childhood education. I taught second grade in the Elmont School District. I also did graduate work at Hunter. I wrote for a local newspaper years ago and own a real estate management company, which my late husband, Sid, began many years ago. I have three grown, married children, Jackie, Lenny and Linda. I have seven grandchildren, Aimee, Matthew, Sara, Danielle, Leah, Ethan, and Sydney. I am the presiding officer of the legislature as well as the legislator for the 16th Legislative District.

Q: What party lines are you currently running on?

A: I am running on the Democrat, Independence and Working Family party lines.

Q: Are you involved in any specific community organizations?

A: I am involved with Women's American ORT, the Syosset Chamber of Commerce, Oyster Bay Association, Hadassah, North Shore Synagogue, Plainview Chamber of Commerce and Plainview Friends of the Library. I was the founder of the newly reinvigorated Syosset Chamber of Commerce and was the founder and first president of the South Woodbury Taxpayers Association and a founding member of the Joint Civic Council of the Town of Oyster Bay.

Q: What are your reasons for running?

A: I am running for re-election because I love what I am able to do for my community and the wonderful strides I have been able to be a part of in bringing Nassau back from the brink of bankruptcy to double A ratings on Wall Street. I am honored and privileged to serve the residents of the 16th Legislative District and absolutely delighted and deeply satisfied when I can have a traffic light installed, fix roadways, and be a caring ear for any problems which residents may encounter.

Q: If elected, what are your goals for the 16th Legislative District? Which would you tackle first?

A: My goal has always been a constant one and that is to be a reachable, caring person who responds to the needs of the district. I try to be proactive in making strides to enrich our daily lives.

Q: Do you anticipate any challenges if elected? If so, what challenges?

A: I consider every day a challenge to be better than the day before. We are faced with many challenges. The fact that our schools do not get their fair share of state aid is a major problem and a definite challenge as we move forward and try to lower the burden of taxation on the residents. The county has not raised taxes in five years but we only account for 17 percent of the whole tax bill. We must work with state officials to find true solutions.

Q: What are some of the major issues you are focusing your campaign on?

A: The focus of my campaign is to explain my accomplishments thus far and to humbly ask the residents to allow me to continue to work toward my goals for a more stable economy for all of us, a cleaner, more open environment, safer roadways, and to help our downtown areas to survive.

Q: What is your favorite aspect of the 16th Legislative District?

A: The 16th Legislative District is just a beautiful place to live. We have everything and should never take it for granted - open space, phenomenal school districts, terrific parks and concerned and informed residents. I have to say that it makes me so proud to hear of our children's accomplishments and to know how giving our residents are to those around them. Most people truly live their lives believing that if you give a man a fish he eats for a day but if you teach a man to fish he eats for a lifetime. Just to represent an area that recognizes the needs of others is truly phenomenal.

Q: Have you ever run for political office before? Were you successful?

A: I ran for Town Council of Oyster Bay in 1977 and in 1993, unsuccessfully, but I have been fortunate enough to be in the Legislature since 1996 and have been lucky enough to have won re-election every two years since.

Compiled by Denise Nash