Zeldin Defeats Throne-Holst As Trump Comes Up Strong With Suffolk Voters

U.S. Representative Lee Zeldin rode a wave of Republican support across Suffolk County to hold on to his seat in the U.S. House of Representatives with a decisive win in the 1st Congressional District over Democratic challenger Anna Throne-Holst.

Mr. Zeldin, of Shirley, won the 1st District with approximately 60 percent of the vote to Ms. Throne-Holst's 40 percent to earn a second two-year term on Capitol Hill.

Mr. Zeldin's margin of victory approximately matched forecasts in recent independent polls that showed him with a 21-percentage point lead over Ms. Throne-Holst, the former Southampton Town supervisor. He will be the first Republican congressman from the district to win a second term in office since Michael Forbes in the 1990s.

“Congratulations to Lee Zeldin on his hard-earned victory in New York’s 1st District tonight, National Republican Congressional Committee Chairman Greg Walden said on Tuesday evening in a statement shortly before Mr. Zeldin claimed victory. "He has been a committed public servant, fighting for the interests of his constituents and sponsoring numerous bills to combat the threat of terrorism both home and abroad. I am excited to continue working alongside Lee in 2017.”

Helping carry Mr. Zeldin to victory was robust support among Suffolk County voters for Donald J. Trump to be the next president of the United States. Mr. Trump—Ms. Throne-Holst had repeatedly highlighted Mr. Zeldin's support for the Republican candidate for president—won the county with about 52 percent of the votes counted as of 10:30 Tuesday night, though he lost New York State overall.

In other races on the ballot, State Assemblyman Fred W. Thiele Jr., an Independence Party member, and Republican State Senator Kenneth P. LaValle both won easy reelection to new terms in the State Legislature in Albany. Mr. Thiele received 62 percent of the vote; his opponent, Heather Collins, tallied 37 percent. Mr. LaValle, who has been in the State Senate for 21 years, also won by a broad margin, 67 percent to 33 percent, over Gregory-John Fischer.

Voters in the five East End towns also approved, overwhelmingly, the extension of the Community Preservation Fund through the year 2050. The extension, which appeared to have been supported by upward of 75 percent of voters in all five towns, allows up to 20 percent of the revenues from the fund—potentially tens of millions of dollars a year across the region—to be dedicated to water quality improvement projects, like the replacement of septic systems. The money will become available starting in 2017.

In Southampton Town, the lone local jurisdiction with a race on this year's ballot, Southampton Town Justice Andrea Schiavoni defeated Ernest Wruck to hold onto her seat on the town bench. Ms. Schiavoni secured 67 percent of the vote to 33 percent for Mr. Wruck, a former town Republican Party chairman.

Check back with 27east.com on Wednesday for final vote tallies and breakdowns of how the South Fork towns in all the races on Election Night.

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