SUFFOLK COUNTY, N.Y. — Democratic Assembly candidate Josh Slaughter’s campaign is facing scrutiny over political signs placed along Sunrise Highway and Route 112, adding to questions about campaign operations as he seeks to unseat Republican Assemblyman Joe DeStefano.
AUXIO.TV has obtained original photographs documenting Slaughter campaign signs installed in roadside grassy areas along Sunrise Highway.
One photograph shows a large Slaughter campaign sign positioned in front of a separate sign supporting DeStefano.
The placement raises a question about compliance with New York State Department of Transportation rules governing political advertising along state highways.
NYSDOT guidance expressly prohibits temporary political signs within the rights-of-way of controlled-access highways and expressways. The agency also restricts signs that interfere with traffic visibility, highway maintenance or safe vehicle movement.
Under the state’s sign-control program, unauthorized signs encroaching on state highway property may be removed by transportation officials.
The issue is not whether candidates have a right to display political signs. They do. The question is whether those signs were installed on property where state regulations prohibit them.
AUXIO’s photographs document the signs’ roadside locations. A determination of whether those exact locations fall within prohibited highway rights-of-way requires confirmation of the applicable property boundaries.
Reports of Damaged DeStefano Signs
The highway sign controversy comes alongside reports that signs supporting incumbent Assemblyman Joe DeStefano have been stolen, damaged or destroyed during the campaign.
The reported incidents raise separate questions about the treatment of political property in a competitive local election.
There is no established evidence connecting Slaughter or his campaign to those incidents, and the responsibility for the reported damage should not be inferred from the highway sign dispute.
Questions Over Campaign Worker Payments
Slaughter’s campaign has also drawn attention over a reported offer of $50 to individuals associated with Laborers Local 66 for four hours of campaign-related work.
That compensation works out to $12.50 per hour.
New York’s minimum wage on Long Island is $17 per hour in 2026, meaning the reported amount is $4.50 below the hourly minimum applicable to covered employees.
Whether the arrangement constitutes a wage-law violation depends on whether the participants were employees, volunteers or otherwise exempt from the applicable requirements.
The campaign should be able to clarify the nature of the arrangement, who made the offer and how participants were classified.
Civic Association Appearance Also Questioned
Another criticism concerns Slaughter’s reported departure from a civic association meeting before residents had finished expressing their concerns.
The circumstances and timing of the departure have not been documented in the material reviewed for this article. An account from meeting organizers or attendees would help clarify what occurred.
Campaign Questions Remain
Slaughter is challenging DeStefano, a four-term incumbent, in the November election.
The campaign sign photographs provide a concrete starting point for examining compliance with state highway rules. The reports concerning campaign compensation, damaged political signs and the civic meeting raise additional issues that require separate supporting evidence.
NYSDOT can clarify whether the photographed sign placements violate highway restrictions. Slaughter’s campaign can explain who authorized the placements and respond to the reported payment arrangement.
Those answers would establish whether the matters involve regulatory violations, disputed campaign practices or conduct permitted under existing rules.