Riverhead Council Member Accuses Ex-Task Force Chair of Political Power Grab

Mark "MK" McLaughlin, a Riverhead musician who chaired the town's Anti-Bias Task Force for more than two years, stepped down in February 2026 citing restrictions that left the group unable to address bias concerns. Five weeks later, the Town Board's liaison publicly accused him of political manipulation.

Council Member Denise Merrifield, the Republican liaison to the task force, delivered prepared remarks at the April 2 Town Board work session charging that McLaughlin had sought authority well beyond what the advisory committee is designed to hold. "It comes down to a very simple issue. It's not about bias, it's not about prejudice, it's not about silencing. It's about power," Merrifield said. She charged that McLaughlin "wants the task force to be empowered to listen, respond and lead without limitation" and resigned "after not being able to promote his political agenda under the banner of the Town of Riverhead."

A central point of contention was whether McLaughlin pushed to align the Riverhead task force with other Suffolk County groups in opposition to President Trump's rollback of diversity, equity and inclusion programs. McLaughlin denied it directly: "To be clear, I never asked the Riverhead Anti-Bias Task Force to organize or participate in any rally involving President Trump." He said the idea of inter-task force collaboration came from Dr. James Banks, the Suffolk County Community College liaison to the group, who "successfully organized a regional gathering across the East End."

McLaughlin has made no secret of his political ambitions. "I would like to see the name Mark MK McLaughlin on the ballot," he said in February 2026. Merrifield cited those aspirations as evidence of improper intent and separately disputed his account of a disagreement involving an LGBTQ group at the Mosaic Festival. McLaughlin also serves as Chief of Staff to State Assembly Member Jodi Giglio, adding a layer of political complexity to Merrifield's accusations.

The dispute ultimately turns on what the Anti-Bias Task Force is authorized to do. Merrifield described it as one of many town advisory committees with no independent authority to act. "My role as liaison is supportive and any direction they wish to pursue must be agreed upon by the members as a committee," she said, adding that mission changes "would then be brought to the Town Board for approval." McLaughlin and several current and former members say Merrifield has used that framing to discourage the group from addressing issues squarely within its purpose.

Tijuana Fulford, founder of the Butterfly Effect Project, a Riverhead youth organization whose children faced racist online harassment, said the task force failed her when she sought its support. "The first thing out of her mouth should have been I'm so sorry that this happened to you," Fulford said of Merrifield. "The Anti-Bias Task Force is nothing." Marylin Banks-Winter, president of the African-American Educational and Cultural Festival Inc. and a former ABTF member, urged the Town Board in March 2026 to "revisit the principles, structure, and practices" of the group. Longtime member Connie Lassandro initially announced she would resign for similar reasons but reversed course after talks with Merrifield and fellow member Marjorie Acevedo.

The current fight traces directly to September 2023, when the all-Republican Town Board shrank ABTF membership from 15 to 11 and removed five members, including co-chairs Cindy Clifford and Michele Lynch, two prominent Riverhead Democrats who had spoken out against the town's executive order on migrants. That restructuring gave the Town Board substantially greater control over task force programming, setting up the current authority dispute.

Under McLaughlin's chairmanship, the task force organized a sold-out Black History on Screen film event at the Suffolk Theater that drew more than 400 attendees, with Suffolk County Sheriff Errol Toulon Jr. on the panel, and developed hate crime awareness programming with the Suffolk County District Attorney's Office.

Democrat Jerry Halpin, who took office as Town Supervisor in January 2026 after defeating Republican Tim Hubbard by just 37 votes, said in March he had not been fully briefed on task force developments. The four remaining council seats, including Merrifield's, are all Republican, and Halpin has not yet taken a public position on the dispute.