25-06-2025
Long Island incumbents hang on in chaotic GOP primary plagued by scandals and infighting
Two top Suffolk County Republicans fended off primary challengers Tuesday night — including one town leader who dodged a growing controversy with a major boost from local police unions.
Smithtown Supervisor Ed Wehrheim appeared to have narrowly held onto his seat after a vicious GOP primary against Suffolk County Legislator Rob Trotta with a 700-vote lead, according to unofficial county Board of Elections tallies on Wednesday.
The adult boyfriend of Wehrheim's daughter had been arrested for stalking Trotta just two days before the election but any bad press was countered by strong backing from the Suffolk County Police Benevolent Association in favor of the seven-year incumbent.
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3 Smithtown Supervisor Ed Wehrheim narrowly survived holding onto his seat in the GOP primary against Suffolk County Legislator Rob Trotta.
Smithtown Supervisor Ed Wehrheim/Facebook
'Last night, the people of Smithtown made their voices heard loud and clear,' Wehrheim told The Post on Wednesday.
Some 400 PBA officers were said to have campaigned door-to-door for Wehrheim or worked phone banks
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'Ed Wehrheim and Smithtown are the embodiment of the Back The Blue movement,' PBA President Lou Civello said in an interview.
Civello said the union would never support Trotta, who he called a 'RINO,' or 'Republican in name only,' and said his Zohran Mamdani-aligned stance on deferring some responsibility from cops over to mental health professionals and social workers makes him a 'traitor to the party' and inspired the PBA's mobilization efforts.
Trotta, a 25-year Suffolk police veteran and the department's 2001 detective of the year, told The Post he believes the real reason behind the PBA's efforts is because of the role he played in helping lock up former police commissioner James Burke — who served 40 months for beating a handcuffed inmate with a group of officers and covering it up.
Meanwhile, Huntington Supervisor Ed Smyth crushed challenger Brooke Lupinacci with 61% of the vote, also securing the top spot on the ballot for the Conservative party as well as the Republican nomination in the deep red district.
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Huntington's primary was centered on disagreements over visions of what future development for the town should look like.
'I knew I was right on the issues, I knew I would never get outworked on the campaign trail and I know that the residents of Huntington focus on the issues,' Smythe told the crowd after his win at the American Legion Hall in Halesite Tuesday.
On the other side of the aisle, Maria Delgado easily defeated Cooper Macco in a Working Families Party primary for Huntington supervisor, while Chris Haines beat Vincent Colavita for the town's highway superintendent.
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3 Huntington Supervisor Ed Smyth easily won his contest against Brooke Lupinacci, receiving 61% of the total vote.
Ed Smyth / Facebook
Two GOP primaries were also held for the open seats on the Suffolk County Legislature where the incumbents — including Trotta — hit their term limits.
Lindenhurst Deputy Mayor Richard Renna defeated Brightwaters prosecutor Shawn Cullinane with 67% of the vote, and retired NYPD detective Sal Formica topped Huntington building supervisor Frank Black with 59%.
In town board races, Smithtown Republican incumbents Thomas McCarthy and Lynne Nowick won with about 29% each.
3 Smyth's victory granted him the top spot in Huntington's primary for the Republican nomination.
Ed Smyth / Facebook
In Huntington, incumbent David Bennardo took the win while his ally, Gregory Grizopoulous, both Republicans, will be at the top of the ticket for the seat that Councilman Sal Ferro will vacate.
Despite the record-setting temperatures, voter turn-out was on par with previous years at about 12%, according to election Commissioner Betty Manzella.
The results set the stage for a high-stakes general election this fall, and with primaries now behind them, candidates are turning their focus to the general election on Tuesday, Nov. 4.
