Will represent Beacon Ward 4, part of Ward 3
Valdes Smith
The Dutchess County Board of Elections said on Monday (Dec. 6) that it had completed counting absentee ballots and that Democrat Yvette Valdes Smith had maintained her Election Day lead to succeed Frits Zernike in the Dutchess County Legislature.
District 16 includes Ward 4 and part of Ward 3 in Beacon. The rest of Beacon is represented by Nick Page, a Democrat who ran unopposed to keep his seat.
The unofficial results, including 147 mail-in ballots, showed Valdes Smith defeating Ron Davis. Valdes Smith, who serves as secretary on the board of the Stony Kill Foundation, led by 117 votes on Election Day over Davis, who chairs the Fishkill Republican Committee, with 238 mail-in ballots outstanding.
Smith 1,498 (53.5 percent)
Davis 1,302 (46.5 percent)Unofficial results, including absentees
Zernike, a Democrat, did not seek a third, 2-year term. The vote still must be certified by the Board of Elections.
Democrats lost two seats in the 25-member Legislature when incumbents Rebecca Edwards of Poughkeepsie, the minority party leader, and Brendan Lawler of Hyde Park were defeated. The Legislature will now consist of 17 Republicans and eight Democrats.
Dutchess County
The Board of Elections said on Tuesday that, with all but 26 of 3,642 mail-in ballots counted, Robin Lois had won re-election as Dutchess County comptroller. The Democrat led Republican challenger Ola Nesheiwat Hawatmeh by 1,546 votes when the polls closed on Nov. 2.
Lois 33,130 (52.5 percent)
Hawatmeh 29,930 (47.5 percent)Unofficial results, including all but 26 absentees
