(PartiallyPolitics.com) – Steven Law, CEO of the Senate Leadership Fund, dissected the outcomes of the recent elections, noting a general trend of Republican losses at state and local levels. However, there was a notable exception in New York’s Long Island, where Republicans celebrated significant victories, marking a rare highlight in an otherwise lackluster election performance for the party.
Ed Romaine, the Republican candidate, triumphed over Democrat Dave Calone, marking the first Republican win for the Suffolk County executive role in two decades. Securing 56% of the vote and a 26,000-vote lead, as reported by The Associated Press, Romaine’s win was a standout success.
This victory cements Republican dominance in the eastern regions of Long Island, where they now hold all countywide positions in both Nassau and Suffolk, along with all congressional seats from the area. Former New York Senator Al D’Amato referred to this outcome as a “political earthquake” in comments to the New York Post.
In his victory speech, Romaine shared with his supporters that the significant margin of his win was a clear mandate, which he intends to utilize in driving progress for the county.
The success is part of a broader “red wave” that has been influencing Long Island politics, driven, as political commentators suggest, by increasing crime rates and a backlash against progressive policing reforms.
Lee Zeldin, a former Republican Congressman from New York, known for his influential role in New York’s Republican resurgence, hailed Romaine’s win as a significant political turnaround. Ed Cox, Chairman of the New York GOP, echoed this sentiment in a statement, celebrating the series of Republican victories in the state and declaring Long Island a stronghold for the party.
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