Long Island

Several New York Democrats running in competitive House races are putting distance between themselves and Gov. Kathy Hochul weeks before Election Day. Rep. Tom Suozzi skipped a Hochul campaign stop on Long Island, citing a scheduling conflict, while Rep. Laura Gillen attended. In New York's 17th District, challenger Cait Conley was caught on video agreeing with GOP Rep. Mike Lawler that "Hochul has got to go," later calling Hochul to smooth things over. Blake Gendebien, running in the 21st District, declined to say if he'd support Hochul. Recent Siena polling shows Hochul's favorability underwater and her lead over Republican challenger Bruce Blakeman narrowing in suburban and upstate areas, reviving concerns about coattail effects seen in 2022.

President Donald Trump made his first visit to Syracuse as a sitting president, headlining a rally for Republican gubernatorial candidate Bruce Blakeman ahead of New York's November elections. About 2,500 supporters packed the Oncenter while a roughly equal number of protesters gathered at Clinton Square before marching toward the venue; no arrests or violence were reported. Trump repeated familiar campaign themes, criticizing immigration policy, downplaying climate change, and claiming credit for the Micron Technology project despite the deal predating his second term. He urged supporters to vote as though he were on the ballot.

Notably, many local Republicans skipped the event, including Onondaga County Executive Ryan McMahon and District Attorney Bill Fitzpatrick, reflecting lingering friction after the GOP's historic losses in Central New York last year. Trump's approval rating in New York sits at 34%, and Blakeman trails Gov. Kathy Hochul in every poll. The visit underscored the high stakes of the governor's race and down-ballot congressional contests, as both parties battle for control of Upstate districts and Congress.

Three of Long Island's four U.S. House races will go without candidate debates before the Nov. 3 election, continuing a trend analysts call a decline in a longstanding American political tradition. Only one debate has been scheduled on the Island: a taped cable TV matchup between Rep. Tom Suozzi (D-Glen Cove) and challenger Michael LiPetri on Oct. 20.

Rep. Andrew Garbarino (R-Bayport) and Rep. Laura Gillen (D-Rockville Centre) have both declined debate invitations, citing direct voter engagement over "staged" events. Garbarino's challenger Patrick Halpin says he's ready to debate "anytime, anyplace," while Gillen's opponent Jeanine Driscoll accused her of avoiding scrutiny. In a reversal of the usual pattern, Rep. Nick LaLota (R-Amityville) wants to debate, but Democratic challenger Chris Gallant has refused. Experts, including former Rep. Steve Israel, warn the decline — tied to safer social media messaging and less competitive districts — deprives voters of chances to see how candidates handle pressure, even as debates continue in some other competitive New York races like NY-17.

New data released by the New York Public Interest Research Group (NYPIRG) shows more than 200 public school buildings on Long Island had at least one water fixture exceeding New York's lead standard of 5 parts per billion. The interactive report breaks down results by county, district and school, covering testing conducted and reported to the state from 2023 to 2026. In Nassau County, 501 outlets (about 4.5% tested) exceeded the limit, with Northside Elementary in Farmingdale and schools in Valley Stream District 24 among the worst affected. Suffolk County had 519 outlets (about 4.6%) above the threshold, led by schools in Kings Park, Hauppauge, Three Village and Middle Country districts.

The findings follow a broader statewide study and an earlier Newsday review that found nearly 3,000 noncompliant fixtures across 123 Long Island districts. Affected districts say they have since installed filtered water stations or taken fixtures out of service, and that current drinking water tests clean. State law requires schools to test for lead every three years and remove noncompliant fixtures.

Democratic candidates in Nassau County, New York, held a news conference in Garden City accusing the New York State Republican Party of distributing campaign mailers with false and misleading claims less than three weeks before Election Day. Hempstead Town supervisor candidate Joe Scianablo and others said the mailers were designed to divide voters.

Specific complaints included a mailer that accused Sean McCarthy, a Port Washington police commissioner and candidate, of funding an "anti-American antisemitic agenda." Assembly candidate Kim Keiserman said she received a similarly misleading mailer. Assembly candidate Dean Tarulli objected to a mailer pairing his photo with Mayor Zohran Mamdani's under the word "insane," alongside quotes he said were falsely attributed to him rather than commentator Hasan Piker.

The state GOP defended the mailers, arguing Democrats have failed to distance themselves from Mamdani and Piker's rhetoric. Democratic Party chair Jay Jacobs called the attacks guilt-by-association with no factual basis. Democrats said they sent a cease-and-desist letter, while some voters said they were simply disregarding the mailers.

New York City residents are reporting an unusual shortage of Diet Coke across grocery delivery services and retailers, with customers on Amazon Fresh, FreshDirect, Costco and Target describing empty shelves and unfulfilled online orders for weeks. Shoppers from the Upper East Side to Brooklyn, Harlem, Queens and Long Island have swapped stories online, with some only half-jokingly declaring a household "emergency" over the missing soda.

The cause remains unclear. Some Amazon Fresh customers suspect a business dispute, such as a contract or invoice issue with Coca-Cola, rather than an actual product shortage, and one commenter claiming to work at an Amazon Fresh warehouse said Pepsi products were still arriving while Coca-Cola's were not. Coca-Cola, Amazon and FreshDirect have not commented. The episode echoes a genuine Diet Coke shortage in India this year, where aluminum can supplies were disrupted by Strait of Hormuz shipping issues tied to the U.S.-Iran conflict, though no link to New York's situation has been confirmed. Diet Coke remains one of Coca-Cola's billion-dollar brands, with global volumes up this year.

Preservationist Glenn Hinchey is restoring a brick building at 401 Hawley Ave. in Syracuse's Hawley-Green neighborhood that operated as a grocery store from roughly 1850 until 1983, when it was abandoned amid the area's economic decline. Hinchey, who has spent 40 years on restoration projects including Syracuse's Hamilton White House and the Landmark Theatre lobby, bought the derelict building 11 years ago after doing structural repair work there. He has since worked steadily to rebuild rotted floors and joists while researching the building's 1850s-era storefront appearance.

Over the decades the store passed through several owners, including German immigrant William Helmstetter, who ran it for 25 years, and Vahram Agababian, an Armenian Genocide survivor who operated it as Babian's Market until repeated robberies and vandalism forced its closure in 1983. While replacing a sidewalk this past Labor Day, Hinchey and volunteers uncovered a 1850s-era community well containing antique marbles, a pocketknife, a key and clay tobacco pipes. Hinchey plans to finish exterior work this year and hopes the space becomes a coffee shop, bakery or ice cream parlor rather than a bar.