Southampton’s Youngest-Ever Mayor Had No Experience in Politics… Then COVID Hit, and He Proved Himself a Leader
Alina sits down with Jesse Warren, mayor of Southampton Village, who recently won a second term
The great thing about walking around the Hamptons is you never know who you’ll run into.
One day, it’s Bill Clinton.
Source: NY Post
The next, it’s Paul McCartney.
Source: NY Post
Just the other day, I was killing time before getting on the jitney when I ran into Jesse Warren — the youngest-ever mayor of Southampton Village.
Instagram: @mayorwarren
Now, you have to understand that I’ve known Jesse for years.
He’s a business owner.
And, if I’m being honest, it still feels a little weird to think of him as a politician.
But who am I?
He recently won a second term… and he’s loving the work.
We chatted recently about why he got into politics, how he dealt with COVID and what he loves about the Hamptons.
WHY RUN FOR MAYOR?
ALINA CHO: You were reelected for a second term as Mayor of Southampton Village almost a year ago. Is that right?
MAYOR JESSE WARREN: That's right.
ALINA CHO: You had never been in politics before, right?
MAYOR JESSE WARREN: That's right. I didn't study politics. I didn't really have much of an interest in it, but I looked at the election of 2016...
ALINA CHO: … nationally.
MAYOR JESSE WARREN: Nationally. And I saw two candidates and I said, "Well, the best people simply are not running for office."
ALINA CHO: Interesting.
MAYOR JESSE WARREN: Democrat or Republican. And I felt compelled to do something. So, I joined the planning commission here in Southampton Village.
ALINA CHO: Got it.
MAYOR JESSE WARREN: And in 2019 I looked at the direction of our own village here.
Source: Dan's Papers
And I saw a record number of vacancies. I saw Lake Agawam, which was one of the most polluted lakes in the entire state of New York, right here in the village.
ALINA CHO: Wow.
MAYOR JESSE WARREN: I saw a lot of over-development, so a lot of McMansions being built without any affordable or workforce housing. No wastewater infrastructure. And for all those reasons and more, I said, "I'm going to run for mayor."
ALINA CHO: So, I remember speaking to you during your first campaign, and you said what made the difference was that you literally went door to door. You knocked on doors, right?
MAYOR JESSE WARREN: That's right. The question is, how do you beat the incumbent in a system that basically...
ALINA CHO: … favors incumbents.
MAYOR JESSE WARREN: Favors incumbents. And we really never had a contested election, not in a long time.
ALINA CHO: Right.
MAYOR JESSE WARREN: I wanted to take my platform and my case to the residents, the people, so I literally spent months just on my own, basically going to people's doors and meeting them and sharing what my vision was for Southampton Village.
ALINA CHO: What was your elevator pitch?
MAYOR JESSE WARREN: The elevator pitch was number one, as a business owner, I wanted to see a more revitalized downtown.
Source: Beechwood Homes
I wanted to see a cleaner environment. There was no comprehensive master plan being done, which is why we saw the massive overdevelopment of the village. And just the need for a higher level of customer service for the residents.
ALINA CHO: How did people respond?
MAYOR JESSE WARREN: So, people were impressed and happy that I actually came to them. A lot of people said, "We've never met anyone who actually was running for office," and other people had never even voted before, so we got a lot of people [out to the polls].
ALINA CHO: Interesting, and that made the difference. It was a tight race, wasn't it?
MAYOR JESSE WARREN: The first one was very tight. I won by 45 votes.
HE WAS ELECTED… THEN, COVID HIT
ALINA CHO: So, it’s one thing to run, having never been in politics, and win. It's another thing to get into office and actually do the work. You could’ve said, “This isn’t for me.” But the opposite happened. And COVID hit not long after you were elected.
MAYOR JESSE WARREN: That's right. I took office in July 2019 and then in March 2020, we had this pandemic.
ALINA CHO: I got to tell you, you really utilized social media to your advantage.
Instagram: @mayorwarren
MAYOR JESSE WARREN: In March, April 2020, there was not a whole lot of information out there. And so, I wanted to use my platform to get as much information out to the residents as possible.
Instagram: @mayorwarren
Especially locally.
ALINA CHO: I watched them.
MAYOR JESSE WARREN: So, I routinely spoke to the [Suffolk] County Executive's office, the Suffolk County Department of Health. I reached out to the governor's office and basically aggregated all the information.
ALINA CHO: Right.
MAYOR JESSE WARREN: And I got all the information out through a nightly social media video post.
ALINA CHO: It was such a scary time.
MAYOR JESSE WARREN: People really felt more comfortable once they got the information. They didn't have access to [it] or know where to get it. So, we wanted to give it to them.
THE BEST PART ABOUT THE HAMPTONS?
ALINA CHO: What’s the best thing about the Hamptons, in your opinion?
Source: HamptonBeach.org
MAYOR JESSE WARREN: Well, I don't think there's a single best thing. There’s just a nice quality of life. There's a nice sensibility about the Hamptons, particularly Southampton. We’ve got beautiful beaches.
Source: Trip101
And a nice downtown right now.
Source: Out East
ALINA CHO: And to the detractors, you say what?
MAYOR JESSE WARREN: I think that what people think of traditionally in the Hamptons, that might be what you see on TV or in the movies. But there is a nice community with a very diverse group of people who live here. Generally, most of the time, we all get along, and we all care about the same common causes. That home that you see in the movies or on TV?
Source: Luxtionary
That's a very small part of what the overall community is all about here.
ALINA CHO: Give it a shot?
MAYOR JESSE WARREN: That's right. We encourage people to come out. It’s a very big place. I’m just the mayor of Southampton, but from Westhampton to Montauk, you've got a ton of ground to cover.