17 Photos
Dorothy Nigro's photo of "The Nigro Rose Garden" won Best in Show and first place in the Rose Garden Class. DOROTHY NIGRO
Voters in area school districts headed to the polls on Tuesday. BY DANA SHAW
Cookie Richard, Principal of Southampton Elementary School, will be retiring June 29. DANA SHAW
Anastasia Gavalas with some of the students that were in her leadership workshop. DANA SHAW
Just after midnight, Mr. Altschuler conceded the race to Mr. Bishop.
He personally thanked a long list of people, including family, local political leaders, campaign staff and volunteers. He also congratulated Mr. Bishop on winning.
“I wish Congressman Bishop the very best efforts in the next couple years,” he said. “God Bless all of you.”
After the speech, Mr. Altschuler told reporters running again in two years wasn’t on his mind. He also credited Mr. Bishop for running a “great campaign.”
“I’m not thinking about running,” he said. “I’m thinking about spending time with my family and helping my community.”
Mr. Altschuler was introduced by Chairman LaValle, who it characterized it as “tough race” and described the young businessman as “a great person.”
“Randy Altschuler once again valiantly carried the banner,” he said.
Tim Bishop took the stand before a cheering crowd at about 11:30 p.m. in the conference room of the Islandia Marriott Hotel to declare victory over Mr. Altschuler.
“I haven’t gotten a call conceding yet, but this is a victory,” he told the audience.
He thanked his campaign and countless individuals, but most of all his family who stood behind him on stage.
“My opponent may have the group with the big checks, but I have the group with the big hearts,” he said.
The congressman said in an interview after his speech that even though it was a tough race, his victory did not surprise him.
“I mean, I was never the underdog,” he said. “I’m the incumbent member of Congress, and I’ve done a damn good job.”
According to unofficial results from the Suffolk County Board of Elections, U.S. Representative Tim Bishop is the apparent winner of his reelection bid against GOP challenger Randy Altschuler.
With 452 districts of 472 reporting, Mr. Bishop secured 52 percent of the vote, 127,830-118,247.
Mr. Bishop claimed victory at Democratic headquarters, but Mr. Altschuler has yet to concede the race.
Southampton Town Councilwoman Bridget Fleming has conceded the race to incumbent State Senator Kenneth P. LaValle.
“Earlier tonight, I called Senator Ken LaValle and offered my congratulations on his victory,” Ms. Fleming said in a release. “This has been a tough, hard-fought campaign, I’m glad to have had the opportunity to debate the issues, and I thanked Senator LaValle for his long service and his dedication to the district.”
At GOP headquarters, the crowd erupted with applause and gave standing ovations when Suffolk County Republican Chairman John Jay LaValle introduced Ed Romaine as the new Brookhaven Town supervisor, the largest township in Suffolk County.
Mr. Romaine, flanked by Mr. LaValle and Brookhaven Town Republican Committee Chairman Jesse Garcia said, “Tomorrow’s a new day in Brookhaven.”
“Let’s build a better Brookhaven,” he said.
Mr. LaValle said the wait for the congressional results could extend well past midnight. “We’ve got to take the congressional seat,” he said, noting this year was “an absolute critical year for the Republican Party in Suffolk County.
State Senator Kenneth P. LaValle also spoke on his large lead. He thanked his supporters, saying the vote was for a suburban majority agenda not a “New York City agenda.”
“It’s great to be in the lead,” he said. “Thank you for your help and assistance.”
The excitement is growing in Democratic headquarters in Islip. Every time the numbers are updated, showing Mr. Bishop ahead of Mr. Altschuler, the crowd erupts in applause.
With 317 of 472 districts, Mr. Bishop maintains lead, 91,186-84,861, or 52-48 percent.
With 164 districts of 212, Mr. LaValle maintains his lead, 54,923-36,287, or 60-40 percent.
With 249 districts, Mr. Bishop maintains his lead, 52-48 percent, 70,257-64,128.
Senator LaValle leads, with 140 districts, 60-40 percent, 46,833-31,498.
With 162 districts reporting, Bishop leads 52-47 percent, 45,948-42,029.
With 106 districts, LaValle ahead 60-40 percent, 33,824-22,900.
The vibe was festive and energetic at The Emporium in Patchogue, where county Republicans mingled and watched election results roll in on giant TV screens. The venue was filled with red and blue lights, music, a packed bar and many people in suits.
Some attendees posed to take photos with a cardboard cutout of a smiling Mitt Romney near the stage.
Tom Foley, an East Quogue resident who hovered near the presidential candidate’s cutout, said he’s supporting Mr. Romney and Mr. Altschuler for many reasons, including opposition to the bank bailout and stances on tax issues. He says he thinks it’s going to be a close race.
“It looks pretty tight, which I’m happy about,” he said. “You don’t want a landslide.”
Those sentiments were shared by Republican Southampton Town Councilman Chris Nuzzi and Town GOP Chairman William Wright, who were also at the event. The country is “torn” this here more so than in years past, said Mr. Wright.
“The red states are the red states and the blue states ate the blue states,” he said. “And the swing states are definitely the swing states.”
As for Randy Altschuler, Mr. Wright said he was optimistic. “I think he’s got a great shot,” he said. He also said he’s a “more seasoned candidate” than the last time he ran against Tim Bishop.
Mr. Nuzzi said Mr. Altschuler is on the “inside track” after securing the Independence Party line.
With 108 districts reporting, Bishop ahead 53-47 percent, 28,877-25,666.
With 66 districts, LaValle ahead, 59-41 percent, 19,862-13,763.
With 48 of 212 districts reporting, incumbent New York Senator Kenneth P. LaValle showed an early lead over Democratic challenger Bridget Fleming, 15,060-10,217
With 68 of 472 districts reporting, incumbent U.S. Representative Tim Bishop took an early lead over Republican challenger Randy Altschuler, 19,218-17,257.
The aftermath of Hurricane Sandy—a gas shortage panic and widespread power outages—didn’t keep voters from lining up at the polls on Tuesday, Election Day, to cast ballots for president and a number of local races on the East End.
At the top of the ticket were Democratic President Barack Obama and Republican challenger former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney. Locally, the congressional race for the U.S. House of Representatives took place between incumbent Democrat Tim Bishop, a Southampton native, and second-time Republican challenger Randy Altschuler, of St. James.
Voters also cast their ballots in a contest between longtime incumbent Republican New York State Senator Kenneth P. LaValle and Democratic Southampton Town Councilwoman Bridget Fleming.
Election results were not available by The East Hampton Press deadline on Tuesday night. For up to date information, please visit www.27east.com.
The race for the 1st Congressional District seat between Mr. Bishop and Mr. Altschuler was a close one in 2010—Mr. Bishop held on by a razor-thin margin of just under 600 votes. This year’s election has been characterized by especially negative advertising from both sides, focusing on Mr. Bishop’s ethics and Mr. Altschuler’s past business practice running a company that outsourced jobs.
This summer, Mr. Bishop was slammed with allegations he solicited a campaign donation for an official action after helping a Southampton resident secure necessary environmental permits to put on a fireworks show for his son’s bar mitzvah. Mr. Bishop has said he’s done nothing wrong, while Mr. Altschuler’s campaign called for a House ethics investigation into the matter. As for Mr. Altschuler, Mr. Bishop’s ads have attacked him for outsourcing jobs through Office Tiger, a company the Republican businessman started in 2000 and later sold.
The two have participated in a number of debates across the district and on the East End, which have focused on a variety of issues, including immigration reform, bipartisanship, abortion, same-sex marriage, Obamacare, the economy, jobs and a host of other topics.
Tuesday afternoon’s turnout was high in East Hampton Town, according to both campaigns and political leaders in the local Democratic and Republican parties.
Early turnout was “much busier” than previous years, said Kurt Kappel, the chairman of the East Hampton Town Republican Committee. When he cast his vote at his election district in Springs, he said there was about an even number of Democrats and Republicans who voted before him.
Others, like Wainscott resident Diana Weir, who is Mr. Altschuler’s campaign manager, and Betty Mazur, the vice chairwoman of the East Hampton Town Democratic Committee, also noticed the high turnout.
“Surprisingly enough, the turnout is pretty good,” said Ms. Weir on Tuesday afternoon. “We’re monitoring here. But I’d say about maybe 30 percent turnout so far of the registered voters. And tonight when people get home from work, there will be a big surge, of course.”
Robert Pierce, the communications director for Mr. Bishop’s campaign, also remarked on the number of people who turned out to vote.
“What we’re seeing is good,” he said. “What we’re seeing is heartening. That turnout will be much more higher than 2010 and initially higher than expected.”
So far, the Suffolk County Board of Elections has received 18,197 absentee ballots for the 1st Congressional District race and 10,302 absentee ballots for the 1st Senatorial District Race. Among the ballots cast for the congressional race, 6,218 were cast by Democrats; 6,804 by Republicans; 3,905 by nonaffiliated/blanks; 760 by Independence Party members; 462 by Conservatives; 25 by Working Families Party members and 23 by Green Party members.
For the 1st Senatorial District, 3,758 absentee ballots were cast by Republicans; 3,571 by Democrats; 2,263 by nonaffiliated/blanks; 2,042 by Conservatives; 446 by Independence Party members; 12 by Working Families Party members and 10 by Green Party members.
Both candidate’s campaigns combined have spent more than $4 million throughout this year’s election, according to figures tallied by the Center for Responsive Politics, which compiles candidate campaign finance filings. As of October 17, Mr. Bishop raised $2,461,632 and spent $2,224,063, leaving him with $544,356 cash on hand. Mr. Altschuler has raised $2,007,082 and spent $1,812,232, leaving him with $204,137 cash on hand.
Ms. Fleming has raised about $150,000 total during the race, more than any other candidate who has challenged the senator in the past, according to Ms. Fleming’s campaign manager Kate Watt. With nearly $270,000 in campaign contributions, Senator LaValle came close to doubling the funds Ms. Fleming accrued.
Rohma Abbas on Nov 6, 2012