Republican Candidate Critiques Democrat Opponent Over Parental Terminology Bill
Conner Dunleavy, a Republican candidate for the New York State Assembly, expressed concerns on Saturday regarding his opponent, Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Lavine. Dunleavy accuses Lavine of pushing forward a controversial bill that removes the terms “mother” and “father” from state law.
During an interview with Matt Boyle on Breitbart News Saturday, Dunleavy, who is running against Lavine in Nassau County’s 13th Assembly District, pointed out that Lavine allowed the bill to progress from his committee to the Assembly floor, where it was ultimately passed by the Democrat supermajority.
“He’s responsible for getting this bill out of the Judiciary Committee,” Dunleavy stated. “Not only is he attempting to abolish the terms for moms and dads, but he also brought the bill to the floor, and it passed thanks to their Democrat supermajority.”
The bill, identified as S9316/A8382A, proposes to substitute “mother” with “gestating parent” and “father” with “non-gestating parent,” along with replacing “paternity” with “parentage” within family law. The measure successfully passed the Assembly in March and cleared the state Senate in June, now awaiting action from Governor Kathy Hochul.
Dunleavy further critiqued Lavine, suggesting that the veteran lawmaker, who has chaired the Judiciary Committee since 2005, does not align with the views of the district’s constituents. He asserted that Lavine sponsors a measure prohibiting parents from objecting to school library content they deem inappropriate.
“He is way too far left for this district,” Dunleavy said. “This community doesn’t reflect that ideology. He’s backed an array of legislation that many of us find problematic, like eliminating cash bail and raising the age where minors can’t be tried as adults, regardless of the crime’s severity.”
Additionally, Dunleavy claimed that Lavine once defended a man who assassinated a New York City police officer—a case that he argued Lavine ultimately lost. He noted a trend in the district leaning more towards Republican candidates, with support increasing from about 30 percent to nearly 50 percent in recent cycles.
Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman, leading the Republican ticket in his gubernatorial campaign, positioned himself as a check against what he described as a socialist agenda championed by New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani. Blakeman criticized the gender-neutral parenting bill, labeling it part of a Democrat “war on New York families.” The 13th Assembly District is fully contained within New York’s 3rd Congressional District, where Republican Mike LiPetri is preparing for a rematch against Democrat Tom Suozzi.
