Zacarese Admits Defeat In Sheriff's Race, Congratulates Toulon

SUFFOLK COUNTY, NY — After the absentee and affidavit ballot were counted, Republican Larry Zacarese released a statement Monday admitting defeat and congratulating his opponent, Democrat Errol Toulon Jr., on his win.

The Suffolk County Board of Elections said Monday that although the final numbers have not been released or certified, Toulon was ahead by 2,043 votes.

In other news, incumbent Democrat William Lindsay III took the 8th Legislative District race by 230 votes, the BOE said Tuesday.

After Election Night, Lindsay had 9,954 votes to Republican Anthony Piccirillo's 9,711; there were 1,019 votes to be counted, with 260 ballots from Democrats, 530 from Republicans, 32 from the Conservative Party, 1 Green Party of Suffolk County ballot, 1 Working Families Party vote, 38 Independence Party ballots, and 157 unaffiliated, or blanks, the BOE said.

Zacarese reflects

“Unfortunately, after counting all of the absentee and affidavit ballots we did not make up the ground we needed in order to prevail," Zacarese said. "I am proud of the campaign we ran, the honest and tireless work of our volunteers and the light that was shown on the electoral process here in Suffolk County. I wish the hard working and dedicated men and women of the Suffolk County Sheriff’s Office only the best and congratulate Errol Toulon, Jr. on winning the election."

He added, “I want to thank all of the supporters and volunteers who spent countless hours working alongside me both on the campaign trail over the last year and at the Board of Elections over these last few weeks. Your steadfast belief in me is beyond humbling and is something I will never forget. I also want to thank my campaign staff and, most important of all, my parents, my wife Yvonne and my children. There is no way I could have gotten through these past 12 months without their love, support and willingness to stand by my side throughout this entire campaign. They remain an inspiration to me and a constant reminder of how very lucky I am.”

It was a nail biter race to the very end in the race for Suffolk County Sheriff and, as of close of business last Tuesday, Errol Toulon Jr. was ahead by 1,538 votes, according to the Suffolk County Board of Elections.

Toulon has reflected: "I️ want to thank the voters and volunteers who have supported my campaign for sheriff and allowed me to get the most votes on Election Day. I am hopeful we can quickly move to count every valid ballot and I am confident that once all the ballots are counted I'll be officially elected sheriff."

The BOE said last week that the final tally was expected by early this week.

According to the Suffolk County Board of Elections, in the sheriff's there were 14,997 absentee ballots to be counted.

Of those absentee ballots, there were 6,118 ballots from Republicans, 5,302 ballots belonging to Democrats, 519 Conservatives, 17 Green Party of Suffolk County, 37 Working Families Party ballots, 551 Independence Party votes, 2 Women's Equality Party ballots, 3 Reform Party, and 2,448 unaffiliated, or blanks.

On Election Night, with all election districts reporting, Toulon was ahead of Zacarese by a margin of 141,006 to 139,652, according to unofficial results.

It's the first time a new sheriff has been elected in Suffolk County in 12 years; longtime Sheriff Vincent DeMarco didn't seek a fourth term.

According to his campaign website, Toulon has 30 years of criminal justice experience, focused upon corrections intelligence and combating gang violence both inside and outside of correctional facilities.

Toulon has 22 years of experience as a uniformed Member of Service with the New York City Correction Department, where he served as a supervisor and instructor at the Correction Academy, the Firearms and Tactics Unit, Emergency Service Unit and Office of Compliance Consultants, his bio states.

Next, he spent two years as assistant deputy county executive for public safety under former Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone.

In 2014, Toulon was named Deputy Commissioner of Operations for the New York City Correction Department; he oversaw the applicant investigation unit, training academy, correction intelligence bureau, emergency preparedness and the policy and procedures unit, his bio states.

In addition, his bio said, Toulon, Jr. is certified through the Department of Homeland Security in emergency planning, radiological emergency management, incident response to terrorist bombing, WMD threat and risk assessment and state disaster management; Toulon is certified to teach weapons of mass destruction awareness, NIMS, domestic terrorism and hate crimes, his bio said.

He received his master's degree in business administration from Dowling College, an advanced certificate in Homeland Security management from Long Island University, recently completed his doctorate in educational administration and attended leadership courses at JFK School of Government at Harvard University, according to his campaign page.

He is a two time cancer survivor recovering from lymphoma as well as pancreatic cancer, his bio says. "His battles with cancer have inspired him to further dedicate his life to helping others," the campaign page reads.

Patch courtesy photos.