How the Massapequas saved Andrew Garbarino

Quite a lot of Rep. Andrew Garbarino’s district voted for his opponent. In fact, the Republican incumbent had 4,500 fewer votes in Suffolk County than Democrat Patrick Halpin in Tuesday’s election.

As it turns out, it was the state’s 2nd Congressional District’s small Nassau County slice — the one occupied by the Massapequas — that put Garbarino over the top and got him elected to a fourth two-year term.

While Halpin carried the Suffolk portion of the 2nd Congressional District, which covers parts of Babylon, Islip and Brookhaven, Garbarino ran up a much bigger margin in the Massapequas.

Results from both counties’ boards of elections showed Garbarino ahead districtwide 51.6% to Halpin’s 48.4%, with 97.2% of the expected vote in and about 7,500 ballots left to count. While Halpin has not conceded, Garbarino has declared victory and numerous sources have tabbed the incumbent as the projected winner.

The district’s Nassau portion covers East Massapequa, Massapequa, Massapequa Park and North Massapequa. There, Garbarino garnered 67.7% of the vote to Halpin’s 32.2%; about 35,000 Nassau votes have been counted.

In Suffolk, where 213,691 votes had been counted with 95% in, Halpin led 51.0% to 48.9%.

The Massapequas gave Garbarino a cushion of roughly 12,400 votes. Overall, he is ahead by close to 8,000 votes overall.

The Suffolk portion is where Garbarino lost ground. He won the district with 59.7% of the vote in 2024, a margin of nearly 20 points. This year, the Suffolk communities that make up most of the district went narrowly for Halpin, a Babylon native and former Suffolk County executive.

The result fit a pattern seen across Long Island on Tuesday. Gov. Kathy Hochul narrowly carried both Nassau and Suffolk, and Rep. Nick LaLota’s lead in the neighboring 1st District fell to about 2 points.

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_{Top: GLI graphic, featuring images of Andrew Garbarino (Facebook) and Patrick Halpin (Facebook).}