NEW YORK
Population (1994): 18,169,000 (up 1.0%), 7.0% of U.S. total
Voting-age population: 13,646,000; 1994 turnout, 37%
Median age: 33.9 years
Median household income: $31,899 ($365 below U.S. median)
Unemployment: 6.5% (0.9% above U.S. average, March 1996)
Last presidential election: Clinton (D): 50% Bush (R): 34% Perot (I): 16%
Congressional delegation: 18 Democrats, 15 Republicans
The tension between the Big Apple's feisty liberals and the upstate conservatives is alive and well in the Empire State, contributing to the nearly even split in its congressional delegation. This year, though, the Democrats hope to make up for some of the seats they have lost to the G.O.P. in the 1990s.
NORA BREDES (D) District 1 (Eastern Suffolk County--Brookhaven; Smithtown)
BORN: Oct. 13, 1950, Huntington EDUCATION: Cornell U, B.S., 1974 FAMILY: Husband, Jack Huttner; three children RELIGION: Unitarian MILITARY: None OCCUPATION: Legislator POLITICAL CAREER: Suffolk County legislature, 1992- ADDRESS: 203 Main Street, East Setauket 11733. Tel.: 516-751-4435
Bredes blasts incumbent Michael Forbes for his vote against the Brady Bill--a sensitive issue here, especially in the wake of the 1993 Long Island train massacre. She also touts her environmental record, which won her the Sierra Club's endorsement. The high-profile support of the district's wealthy liberal minority could make this a competitive race.
THE ISSUES
Budget NO Medicare NO Defense YES Abortion NO Guns YES Gays YES Bosnia NO NAFTA NO Welfare NO Medical Leave YES (For an explanation of these issues, see the front of this guide.)
QUOTE OF NOTE: "I will fight to preserve Medicare, college loans, Head Start and school lunches. I will stand in opposition to the extreme right-wing agenda being pursued in Washington."
MICHAEL FORBES (R) District 1
BORN: July 16, 1952, Riverhead EDUCATION: State U of New York at Albany, B.A., 1983 FAMILY: Wife, Barbara; two children RELIGION: Roman Catholic MILITARY: None OCCUPATION: Chamber of Commerce director POLITICAL CAREER: U.S. House, 1994- ADDRESS: P.O. Box 505, Farmingville 11738. Tel.: 516-399-2800
Though this district leans Republican, a solid base of blue-collar Democrats and an enclave of wealthy liberals make Forbes vulnerable. But he retains his conservative base with proposals to end parole for armed criminals and grant middle-class tax breaks. On the Armed Services Committee he has fought for defense-conversion jobs to ease the pain of military-contract cutbacks.
THE ISSUES
Budget YES Medicare YES Defense NO Abortion YES Guns NR Gays NR Bosnia YES NAFTA NR Welfare YES Medical Leave NR (For an explanation of these issues, see the front of this guide.)
QUOTE OF NOTE: "I'm a strong proponent of a balanced budget, of tax relief for the middle class and of a healthier, safer, cleaner environment."
KENNETH HERMAN (I) District 2 (Western Suffolk County--Islip; Babylon)