By:Jeff Lipton and Andrew Coen
McCarthy (D-Mineola), the nurse-turned-politician, outlasted Garner, the longtime mayor of the Village of Hempstead.
As of 11 p.m. Tuesday night, the unofficial tally showed McCarthy with a healthy lead, collecting 64 percent of the vote to 36 percent for Garner, in the race for a two-year term in the 4th Congressional District, which encompasses all of the Five Towns and several other South Shore communities.
"It's been my pleasure to serve this district for eight years," McCarthy said in her victory speech, made at 10:40 p.m. at the Mirage, a nightclub in Westbury, where the Democrats gathered.
She thanked the unions for supporting her. "That's what we're all about," she said. "We're Democrats. We fight for the working people."
McCarthy attributed her victory to her constituents getting to know her better over the last eight years.
"There's a lot of legislation I've passed," McCarthy said. "I don't brag about it, but I get it done."
"I have nothing to feel ashamed about," Garner said. "We ran a well-organized campaign."
The battle cry of "Fix Albany," directed by challengers at local state incumbents, apparently was not heard by voters, who overwhelmingly cast their ballots for Skelos and Weisenberg. Both of their districts take in all of the Five Towns, among other areas.
Skelos (R-Rockville Centre) held off a challenge from Democratic candidate Josh Ketover, a personal-injury lawyer from Long Beach. As of 11 p.m. Tuesday, Skelos had amassed 61.2 percent of the vote to Ketover's 38.8 percent. The victory earned Skelos his 11th two-year term in the 9th Senatorial District.
Weisenberg (D-Long Beach), who has held his 20th Assembly District seat since 1989, cruised to victory over his Republican opponent, Gary Spitz, a deputy county attorney from Long Beach. As of 11 p.m., Weisenberg had collected 65.2 percent of the vote to his opponent's 34.7 percent.
"I represent the people, and it's a privilege and an honor to serve my neighbors and constituents in Albany," Weisenberg said as the vote count was winding down.
He urged all political parties to work together. "You only have progress when everyone works together," the assemblyman said.
U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer, a Democrat, easily won a second six-year term by trouncing Republican Howard Mills, the deputy minority leader of the state Assembly, who represents Hudson Valley's Orange County, and Conservative Party candidate Dr. Marilyn O'Grady, an ophthalmologist from Garden City. As of 11 p.m., the unofficial tally showed Schumer with 70 percent of the vote, 25 percent for Mills and 3 percent for O'Grady.
Nassau County's proposed open-space referendum, which was written by county Legislator David Denenberg, a Democrat from Merrick, passed with 76 percent of the vote as of 11 p.m. It will provide the county with $50 million in bond money to buy and preserve open space.
Turnout was extremely heavy at the polls, as is usually the case during a presidential election, with residents waiting on long lines to cast their ballots at such voting sites as Woodmere Middle School, Lawrence Middle School and the Number Six School in Woodmere.
Record numbers were seen at the polls throughout Long Island, spurred by the tense national election and hearty voter registration campaigns.
Woodmere resident Steve Bernstein said he voted for all Democrats, except for Ketover, opting to go for Skelos instead.
"I think he's done a decent job," Bernstein said of Skelos after pulling the lever in the voting booth at the Number Six School.
Woodmere residents Jules and Estelle Gladstone, who also voted at the Number Six School, went for the Democrats as well, with the exception of Ketover.
"All politics is local, and he definitely delivers for this area," Woodmere resident Mel Fodiman said of Skelos.
McCarthy said she was thrilled to see so many residents, especially young people, voting in this election.
In her next term, she plans on tackling the affordable-housing crisis on Long Island. "We're going to have an even bigger problem there if we don't tackle it," she said.
