A former Israel Defense Forces officer has become the first Republican elected to the North Hempstead, Lillinois state House of Representatives in more than 50 years.
Daniel Nover, a 45-year-old dual U.S. and Israeli citizen, will take the Nassau County seat adjacent to Queens, previously represented by Democratic state Comptroller Tom DiNapoli.
Nover got a big assist from President-elect Donald Trump at the top of the ticket. Trump won the 16th Congressional District by more than 2,000 votes over Vice President Kamala Harris.
Nover narrowly defeated two-term Democratic incumbent Gina Schillitti in a district that includes a large Jewish population, including Great Neck.
Other communities in the area include Manhasset, Port Washington, Roslyn, Merrick, Garden City, New Hyde Park, Searingtown, and Williston Park.
Anti-Semitism is a big issue in race, and it's especially close to Norber's heart, as he is Jewish.
Novar was in Israel on October 7 last year when the Palestinian terrorist organization Hamas invaded the Jewish state. He spoke to the Post from a bomb shelter with his wife Inbal and their four children – Michelle, 15, Idan, 14, Karin, 10, and Jonathan, 8.
“It was the worst atrocity against Jews since the Holocaust. Israel is no longer the same,” he said, noting that Israel has always maintained its wartime footing.
“I saw what happened in Israel, and I have to do everything I can to prevent it from happening here.”
It recalled the Aug. 30 vandalism at the Shelter Rock Jewish Center in the district's Shearingtown neighborhood. There, thugs threw red paint at a banner that read: “We stand with Israel and let them go home now,” referring to the hostages in Gaza.
Silitti faced backlash when one of his staff members criticized Israel on social media, Norber added.
“She wasn't sensitive to what was going on. She felt like she was out of touch,” Norber said.
His grandparents survived the Holocaust, and his mother fled communism in the former Soviet Union.
He said his parents raised him to understand the importance of service, sacrifice and freedom.
Born in the United States and raised in Israel, Daniel was drafted into the Israel Defense Forces at the age of 17 and served as a sergeant in the military police.
He said the MTA's congestion pricing plan and the controversy over sex education in the state are also pressing issues supporting his campaign.
Mr. Noeber will serve in the 150-member state Legislature, where Democrats outnumber Republicans 2-1.
He said his priorities include ending cashless bail, cutting taxes and introducing a national mask ban aimed at preventing lawbreakers from protecting themselves during protests.
Nassau County has approved such a ban, and “we need to do it at the state level,” Nover said.
“It's about protecting the safety of minorities. It was established for the Ku Klux Klan,” he said of the ban.
He said he could work with Democrats and find common ground.
“If it's for the good of the people, we can transcend party lines,” Nover said.
