WASHINGTON : Top Waxman Aide Runs for Congress

Rep. Henry A. Waxman (D-Los Angeles) has seen proteges run for elective office themselves before. But from . . . Long Island?

Waxman’s top Washington aide, Phil Schiliro, is seeking a newly drawn congressional seat in Nassau County, New York, this fall.

Schiliro, 35, who has worked for Waxman for the past decade, faces an uphill fight in an area that generally votes Republican.

The district boundaries have not been set yet amid ongoing battles over proposed lines.

But both Republican lawmakers who represent the surrounding communities--Reps. Raymond J. McGrath and Norman F. Lent--recently announced that they will not run again.

Schiliro said he feels he can overcome any charges of carpetbagging--he lives in Virginia as well as working for a California congressman--because he grew up in Nassau County and still has family in the region.

The primary is in September.

Waxman--whose first chief legislative aide, Burt Margolin, is now a Los Angeles assemblyman (with his own congressional aspirations)--is providing counsel.

Schiliro has taken a leave of absence, which began Tuesday.