About Jon

Jon Cooper was born on February 1, 1955 and grew up on Long Island. He received a B.A. degree from Duke University in 1977, majoring in Political Science. Since 1978, Jon has run Spectronics Corporation, a company with 175 employees that is one of the largest manufacturing firms on Long Island.

Jon and his spouse, Robert, settled in Huntington in 1983. They adopted five children, who now range in age from 23 to 14 years old (their twin girls are the youngest).

Jon has been active in his community for many years, serving on the board of numerous organizations involved in the areas of environmental protection, children and family services, historic preservation and the arts. He also volunteered as a coach for 12 seasons in the Cold Spring Harbor/Huntington Soccer League.

In November 1999, Jon was elected Legislator for the 18th Legislative District in Suffolk County, which encompasses the northern portions of Huntington Township.

Jon Cooper was the author of Suffolk's landmark legislation that banned the use of hand-held cell phones while driving. This was the first law of its type in the nation and served as the model for similar cell phone laws enacted in subsequent years by dozens of states across the U.S.

Jon has been a leader in the fight to preserve open space in Suffolk County. He authored bills to protect our drinking water, reduce the use of chemical pesticides and promote the use of clean, renewable energy technologies. Jon received the Long Island Sierra Club's Environmentalist of the Year Award in 2001, the first time this honor has been bestowed on an elected official.

Other legislation sponsored by Jon Cooper includes the "Safe Pets and Families" bill that protects domestic violence victims and their pets. He obtained funding for a marine research program to study the cause of the devastating lobster die-off in the Long Island Sound and introduced legislation to facilitate full public disclosure of election campaign finances.

Despite a massive lobbying effort by the $1.7 billion ephedra industry, Jon successfully fought for passage of legislation prohibiting the sale of that deadly dietary supplement. Once again, this was the first such law enacted in the nation and it ultimately led to the imposition of a nationwide ban by the federal government.

In 2006, Jon achieved passage of New York State’s toughest residency restriction law for child sex offenders, as well as a groundbreaking anti-loitering law for the most dangerous sexual predators.

For the past several years, Jon has been honored by the Long Island Press as one of the "50 Most Powerful Long Islanders," reflecting the dramatic impact that he has had on our community. In addition, Long Island Business News selected Jon as one of the "Ten Leaders Who Changed Long Island” in 2008.

In November 2008, Jon was re-elected for a fourth consecutive term as Majority Leader of the Suffolk County Legislature.

Jon Cooper was the first elected official in New York State to endorse Barack Obama for President.  He served as Obama’s Long Island Campaign Chair during the 2008 presidential race and was a member of his National Finance Committee.  Jon also served on Obama’s LGBT Leadership, Finance & Policy Committee as well as his Jewish Community Leadership Committee.