Although the results are not yet official, Suffolk County Legislator Al Krupski is victorious over Republican candidate Donald Grim in the race for Southold Town Supervisor, with nearly 72% of the vote going in Mr. Krupski’s favor, according to the Suffolk County Board of Elections. The Democratic candidate will succeed Scott Russell, who served as Southold Town Supervisor for 18 years.
In 1986, Mr. Krupski began his political career as a Southold Town Trustee, a position he maintained until he was elected to the Town Board in 2005. After seven years on the board, voters elected him to the Suffolk County Legislature in 2013, the position in which he currently serves residents of Southold, Riverhead and Brookhaven Towns. A fourth-generation farmer who owns Krupski Farms, environmental preservation has underscored his political career, from helping write a town-wide drainage code which reduced road runoff into creeks and estuaries as a Town Board member, to supporting Suffolk County’s move to put $1 million towards coastal resiliency efforts as a legislator.
At a Democratic party celebration at Greenport Harbor Brewing Co. in Peconic, Mr. Krupski spoke of his impending win.
“My three children are here,” he said. “They’ve given us six grandchildren and this is really the reason I’m doing this. You look to the future and this is our time here in Southold Town. You look at the great history of the town and this is our chance to make an impact — not just elected officials but everyone who cares about the town and wants to do something for it.”
While Mr. Krupski’s win appears appears decisive, the Town Council is still very much in contention.
Jill M. Doherty, with 25.94% of the vote in the race for Town Council and just behind Anne H. Smith (D) leading with 26.41% of the vote for the two open seats, thanked her supporters last night and said she is “feeling pretty confident.”
“This whole campaign has been positive all around,” Ms. Doherty said. “It’s been fun, I’ve knocked on over 1,200 doors and I’ve got a lot of feedback from a lot of people. Just being around town, I feel confident that I’m in.”
Stephen K. Kiely is current in fourth place in the Town Council race, and said he felt “disappointed.”
“Who knows what the results will actually be?” he said. “I’m disappointed for the direction of the town that it’s going to go.”
“We don’t know if absentee is included here,” said Sandra Benedetto, acting chair of the Democratic Committee. “We do know we have 200 Democrat-submitted absentee voted, [but] we don’t know how they voted. But we’re hopeful. With a race this tight, that could make the difference.”
Peter McGreevy, Southold Town Republican Chair, said, “Right now we don’t have complete results from the Board of Election. While it’s a straightfroward call on the Supervisor race and the uncontested races, Town Board is obviously tight enough that we need to final votes and absentee counts before a call is made.”
William J. Flinter (D) lead the Town Assessor race with 52.64% of the vote. His opponent Michael C. Goscinski (R) is right behind him with 47.36%.
Daniel C. Ross (D) lead the Town Justice race with 52.88% of the vote over Brian J. Hughes (R), with 47.12%.
Mr. Ross was first elected to the position of Southold Town Justice in 2019. His experience includes his practice of law in Mattituck for the past 37 years, his public service as a town Councilman and his municipal law experience as village attorney for Greenport. He has been a practicing attorney in the Supreme Court in Riverhead and the Southold Town Justice Court for more than 30 years. He is a member of the NYS Bar Association, the Suffolk County Bar Association and the NYS Magistrate’s Association.
Mr. Hughes previously served a term as Southold Town Justice from 2015 to 2019. He served as part of the Assigned Counsel Defender Plan of Suffolk County Felony Panel. As Southold Town Justice, he volunteered in the East End Regional Intervention Court (drug court) helping defendants with substance abuse issues. Mr. Hughes was a member of the Southold Ethics Board for nine years
During his campaign, Mr. Hughes faced criticism for previous statements made about Mr. Ross. He claimed Mr. Ross’s affiliation with the Working Families Party meant he supports defunding the police — an assertion Mr. Ross called “absurd” at a past candidate forum.
Mr. Hughes also claimed he was the “only judicial candidate” who completed the NYS Unified Court System Judicial Campaign Ethics Training Program and “the only candidate the Suffolk County Bar Association judicial screening committee has found qualified for judicial office in the election.” He subsequently informed The Suffolk Times that those statements were inaccurate, as both candidates were screened and found qualified.
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