Signs on the front of GOP headquarters in Babylon help to define the three different candidates running for office in Babylon who share a similar last name.

by Carolyn James

Which Babylon Town Republican candidate has a last name that begins with a "G" and ends with an "o"?

Republican Tom Gargiulo, who is running for Babylon Town Council.

But wait, there’s more. So does Republican Frank Gargano, who is running for the Suffolk County Legislature in the 16th district, and Republican Dennis Garetano, another Suffolk Legislative candidate, running in the 17th district.

Confusing? Maybe so, but the candidates said that the similarities in their names have actually helped them.

"I met a woman in front of the supermarket as I was campaigning and she told me that she knew I was running because I had stopped by her house," said Gargano, who is opposed by Democrat Steven Stern. "I asked her where she lived and realized it wasn’t me, but Tom Gargiulo. I think it’s raising name recognition for us and working in our favor."

"I’m for anything that lets people know I am running," said Gargiulo, an athletic coach from Babylon. "I can use all the help I can get." Gargiulo is running against incumbent Councilwoman Carol Quirk, a Democrat.

"They (some voters) think we’re one person, but we’re three," said Dennis Garetano as he campaigned outside of a local supermarket in North Babylon recently. "We’re really getting mileage out of our names." Garitano squares off against Democrat Louis D’Amaro.

"Everywhere I walk in Deer Park, someone says they’ve talked to me before," said Gargiulo. "I tell them no, it’s me, the coach."