Republicans are on the verge of painting Long Island red.
The GOP is set to take control of all major offices on Long Island — with their candidate Ed Romaine favored to win the coveted Suffolk County executive seat in Tuesday’s election.
Romaine, the Brookhaven Town Supervisor since 2012, faces off against Democrat businessman David Calone, a former federal prosecutor and businessman.
The winner will replace current Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone, a three-term Democrat who can’t run again because of term limits.
If Romaine wins, Republicans will have a clean sweep and dominate Long Island’s major offices — occupying both the county executive seats of Nassau and Suffolk, both district attorney’s offices, both comptroller’s offices and all four congressional seats.
Pickups of congressional seats on Long Island helped the GOP capture control of the House of Representatives in last year’s midterm elections.
Backlash over the Democrats’ cashless bail reform law helped propel GOP victories for Nassau County Executive and the two district attorneys in Nassau and Suffolk in 2021.
“I’m very bullish on Ed Romaine’s chances. Ed Romaine seems to be in very good shape as long as he works hard to the finish line,” said former Long Island Rep. Lee Zeldin, the 2022 GOP nominee for governor who has stumped with Romaine.
While Gov. Kathy Hochul narrowly defeated Zeldin last year in a surprisingly close statewide race, Zeldin clobbered the Democrat on his home turf of Suffolk.
“Long Island will become the reddest it’s been in decades,” Zeldin said.
Former GOP Sen. Al D’Amato said, ” Ed Romaine will win.”
“Ed is respected across the board,” D’Amato added. “He’s a professional.”
Even Newsday, whose editorial board leans liberal, endorsed Romaine, making it much more difficult for Calone to gain traction, D’Amato noted.
Independent observers also give Romaine the edge, and said angst over the migrant crisis has Democrats playing defense.
“Zeldin’s strong showing in a swing county certainly bodes well for Romaine and Republicans throughout the county, as does the Brookhaven supervisor’s base in the largest township,” said Lawrence Levy, dean of Hofstra University’s National Center for Suburban Studies.
“But, while a lot of the issues that help Zeldin still have energy with voters, like fear of crime, Calone could be within striking distance because he’s raised a lot of money, has a unified Democratic organization and the benefit of some national issues that may not have anything to do with Suffolk, like abortion and Congressional dysfunction, but which can drive voters of either party to come out against local officials,” he said.
Levy added, “The competitiveness of the race, and the yin and yang of local versus national issues may make it a bellwether for where the country or certainly the region is going in 2024.”
Romaine, 76, noted that he has the backing of police unions.
“Suffolk residents want a safer and more affordable Island. As the only law enforcement-endorsed candidate in this race, I have the necessary experience and support to keep residents safe,” Romaine told The Post.
“My experience gives me the ability to save taxpayers dollars by eliminating the home heating tax and providing an honest budget. Democrats on Long Island are running on a Hochul liberal agenda of bail reform, higher taxes, and higher electric rates. I am confident that my campaign will ensure a strong red wave in this County and a safer and more affordable Suffolk County,” he said.
While Zeldin has campaigned with Romaine, Hochul has not been personally stumping for Calone.
But state Democratic Party Chairman Jay Jacobs, who also is the neighboring Nassau County party leader, said Calone, 50, is a strong, energetic candidate and should not be counted out.
“Calone has a shot,” Jacobs said, while acknowledging that Romaine is the favorite and Calone is the underdog.
“It depends on turnout,” he said. “If turnout is decent for Democrats, Calone will win. He should win.”
He also said voters might be turned off by “crazy Republicans” running the House.
“They elected the most extreme person to be the Speaker of the House,” added Jacobs, referring to Louisiana Rep. Mike Johnson.