Sapienza, 65, of Elmont, is making his first run for public office, on the Republican and Conservative lines. He received a bachelor’s degree in accounting from St. John’s University. He owns and operates Sapienza Bake Shop in Elmont, which his father opened in 1967 and Sapienza took over in 1973. Sapienza is president of the Elmont Chamber of Commerce and past president of both the Nassau-Suffolk Bakers Association and the New York State Bakers Association. He is on the board of directors for the Elmont youth nonprofits Gateway Youth Outreach and the Martin DePorres School for Exceptional Children. He is married with three children.

Sapienza said he would make economic development his top priority, with a focus on lobbying for the full reopening of the Long Island Rail Road station at Belmont Park and supporting the redevelopment proposal for the site that will create the most jobs. The state is currently considering several bids for the site, including a new arena for the New York Islanders and a soccer stadium. Whichever proposal is chosen, Sapienza said he would also like to see room for a hotel and convention center on the site. He said he doesn’t think the site is the right fit for a community center or park, which some residents favor. “I feel that those really don’t provide economic development,” he said. Sapienza said the district’s commercial corridors also need improvement, and supports more funding for streetscape projects to attract new businesses.

Solages, 38, of Elmont, is seeking a fourth term in the legislature and is running on the Democratic, Working Families, Independence and Reform Party lines. He received a bachelor’s degree in international history from Georgetown University and a law degree from Boston College Law School. He worked as an assistant district attorney in the Bronx and now works in private practice at his Elmont-based civil and criminal defense law firm, Solages & Solages. Before his election in 2011, Solages was a commissioner of the Nassau County Commission on Human Rights. He is single and has one child. He pleaded not guilty in June to misdemeanor charges of assault and endangering the welfare of a child, stemming from an alleged domestic violence incident involving his then-girlfriend.

Solages said he will continue fighting to undo the tax breaks granted to Green Acres Mall in Valley Stream, which he and others blame for increased school taxes to many residents in his district. The mall’s owners have sued to keep the tax breaks after they were revoked this year by the Hempstead Town Industrial Development Agency. “The community is really in pain,” he said. Solages wants to create an independent inspector general’s office to review county contracts and better identify potential corruption. “We haven’t implemented all the safeguards we need,” he said. Solages also said he would oppose attempts to raise traffic ticket fees to balance the county budget and would closely follow redevelopment efforts at the state-owned Belmont Park. He said he wasn’t ready to endorse any of the proposals under current consideration, including a new arena for the New York Islanders. Solages opposed a previous effort to build a 25,000-seat soccer stadium on the land, instead favoring plans that included a supermarket and community center.