Mayor of Mineola (2004–2010) Martins was elected mayor of the Village of
Mineola, New York in 2003. The election results were not certified until December 4, 2010. Johnson challenged the results and demanded a hand
recount, but the
New York Court of Appeals rejected his appeal on December 20, 2010. He authored laws reducing busing costs for school districts; creating a truss notification system to improve safety for volunteer firefighters; and establishing a new state fund to help homeless veterans. In 2011, Martins voted against allowing
same-sex marriage in New York during rollcall for the
Marriage Equality Act, which narrowly passed, legalizing it by 33 to 29. Martins was highly critical of the New York State Education Department's implementation of the
Common Core standards and called for the resignation of the State's Commissioner of Education for cancelling public forums on the issue with parents and teachers. While in the Senate, Martins repeatedly led Long Island's 31 state legislators in the number of bills sponsored that were ultimately passed by both houses of the State Legislature. In February 2016, Martins and
state Assemblywoman Michelle Schimel called for new state funding to support a comprehensive groundwater study for Long Island. An expanded version of their proposal was adopted by
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo. Martins sponsored legislation that would prevent New York from entering into a state contract or investment with those who boycott Israel or other American allies. Martins served as chairman of the State Senate's Labor Committee and was co-chair of the Senate's Task Force on Workforce Development. He previously chaired the Senate's Commerce, Economic Development and Small Business Committee and the Senate's Local Government Committee. Martins also served on the New York State Mandate Relief Council, which was created to help reduce costs for local governments and school districts by eliminating or reforming regulations. Martins did not seek re-election to the State Senate in 2016; instead, he ran for Congress
2016 congressional campaign Martins was the Republican nominee in the 2016 election to represent
New York's 3rd congressional district in the
United States House of Representatives, and received the endorsement of the
Republican Party,
Conservative Party and the
Independence Party. Martins was defeated by Democrat
Tom Suozzi in the general election. Suozzi won 53% of the vote to Martins' 47%.
2017 Nassau County executive campaign On April 26, 2017, Martins announced that he would run for Nassau County executive. Martins received the
GOP nomination for County Executive and was uncontested in the primary. Martins was narrowly defeated by the Democratic nominee, Nassau County legislator
Laura Curran, in the November 7, 2017, election; Curran won 51% of the vote to Martins' 48%.
2024 congressional speculation Amid calls for newly seated congressman
George Santos to resign, Martins was mentioned as a possible replacement. After George Santos was expelled in December 2023, Martins decided to not seek the GOP nomination for the
2024 special election. ==Personal life==