43. William Lindsay

This Democrat, having survived war with former Republican Suffolk County Executive Steve Levy, whom he helped oust, has become the longest-serving presiding officer in county history. Like his counterpart in Nassau, Lindsay has come under fire for some unpopular measures—the post-Election Day tax hike for one—just as he’s tasked with filling a budget gap rivaling Suffolk’s fiscally plagued neighbor to the west. His legislature may be less dysfunctional than Nassau’s, but the fiscal battles raging within are sure to be the performance of his career in his last two years before he’s term-limited. All while fighting a personal battle with cancer.