Suffolk Democrats claim local seats as state leaders sweep
Three state legislative districts flipped to the left in Suffolk County on Tuesday, while the county comptroller race remained too close to call.
By Justin Barnes ·
Suffolk County Democrats secured control of three state legislative seats on Tuesday, a local gain that coincided with a national shift in power.
Unofficial results from the November 3 election showed Democratic candidates winning state Senate District 1, Assembly District 3, and Assembly District 12. Chris Murray took the Senate seat, which covers the area from Stony Brook eastward. Josh Slaughter won Assembly District 3, spanning Medford to Mastic, while Craig Herskowitz claimed Assembly District 12, covering Lloyd Harbor to East Northport. Assemblywoman Rebecca Kassay, representing Assembly District 4 in Port Jefferson, also retained her seat with 58 percent of the unofficial vote.
The county comptroller race remained undecided on Wednesday morning. Democrat Jon Estreich trailed Republican Daniel Losquadro by approximately one percent. Neither candidate has previously held the office, as incumbent John Kennedy Jr. did not seek re-election. Schaffer, the Suffolk Democratic Chair, noted that absentee ballots could still arrive for up to seven more days, keeping the outcome in play.
Local candidates for the U.S. House of Representatives also faced tight races. Patrick Halpin, challenging incumbent Andrew Garbarino in District 2, and Chris Gallant, running in District 1, both trailed their Republican opponents by about two percent. Halpin argued that the only valid result is the one certified after all votes are counted. Both challengers criticized the current congressional majority for failing to set tariff policy and promised to increase their presence in local communities.
New Assemblyman Slaughter identified economic relief and infrastructure as top priorities for his district. He described the area as working-class and cited specific needs, including cleanup of the Brookhaven landfill and development of road overpasses and underpasses. He also pledged to address what he termed predatory practices in car and home insurance.
Statewide, voters elected Democrat Kathy Hochul to a new term as governor and Democrat Letitia James as attorney general. Republican Thomas DiNapoli won the state comptroller race. In Suffolk County, Republican Vincent Puleo won the county clerk position with no Democratic opponent, though the race saw a write-in vote of 11 percent. This followed a write-in campaign by Abigail Field after Democratic candidate Anthony Portesy dropped out of the race.
Rich Schaffer stated that the House of Representatives is critical to protecting democracy. The county board of elections will continue to process remaining ballots over the coming week to finalize the results for the open races.
