Republican Ed Romaine flips Long Island's Suffolk County executive seat, pledges to bring county together
HAUPPAGUE, N.Y. -- For the first time in 12 years, Suffolk County on Long Island will have a new executive, replacing term limited Democrat Steve Bellone.
This time, voters elected a Republican, bucking a national trend.
"We crushed it, baby. We crushed it," County Executive-elect Edward Romaine said.
Romaine likes the headlines he saw Wednesday.
"First Republican in 20 years to become county executive of Suffolk County," he said.
"I would like to congratulate Ed Romaine on his victory last night after a hard fought campaign. Our communities have placed their trust and confidence in him to lead our county forward," Bellone said in a statement, adding, "I am committed to ensuring a seamless transition and handover of responsibilities to the new administration beginning on Jan. 1."
Romaine, the former Brookhaven town supervisor, received 57% of the vote. The county executive-elect says his first order of business is unifying the 18 legislators there.
"My goal is to bring everyone together and do the things we all agree on and form a consensus," Romaine said.
"Ed Romaine is about as far from an extremist as you can get," political analyst Michael Dawidziak said.
Although the nation leaned Democrat on Election Day, Long Island charted its own path, Dawidziak said.
"Once again, Long Island was an outlier. Very much like last year, the rest of the country went blue. Long Island went red. But this is really a reaction to Albany politics," he said.
"They own it all now and it's not surprising," said Christopher Malone, the associate provost of Farmingdale State College. "That's a response to what is happening in Albany, with one-party ruling on one side, and what's happening in Washington as well."
Republicans on Long Island now control both county executive seats, both legislatures, both district attorneys and all four congressional seats.
"Long Island is bright red right now," Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman said.
Malone, who teaches political science, said Romaine's win could help boost Long Island's freshmen congressmen who played a major role in helping Republicans take control of the House.
"A county executive and county legislator have enormous power to talk to voters, to raise money," Malone said.
Blakeman said he welcomes Romaine into GOP leadership.
"Ed and I are going to do some great things together here on Long Island on a lot of regional issues," Blakeman said.
They mention taxes, immigration, public safety.
"The Gilgo case is a perfect example of that. So I am going to be guided and give the DA, as well as the police, the tools they need, and our medical examiner, to do the job to keep us safe," Romaine said.
Romaine will appoint Suffolk's new police commissioner.
"It doesn't surprise me to have Republicans win Long Island. Tends to be more conservative here," one person said.
"Things are not going as well as promised by the Democrats," said another.
"We had a red wave a year ago, and the Republicans did very well. They gave us Santos," said another.
Romaine, 76, will serve a four year term.
Analysts say there has only been a brief period in the last few decades that Republicans have had this much control over Long Island, but it may not last that long.
"There are pockets of deep blue against the sea of red," Malone said.
Each county executive term last four years, with a 12-year term limit on Long Island.
Political experts also attribute romaine's win to more Republicans being energized to head to the polls.
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