By Dan Hust
SULLIVAN COUNTY — Sullivan County voters swamped polling places Tuesday, though Republican Elections Commissioner Rodney Gaebel said Wednesday that problems were virtually non-existent.
“We had a much higher voter turnout than expected,” he remarked.
Around 30,000 voters – more than a third of the county’s year-round population and a majority of the eligible pool of voters – cast ballots, deciding not only presidential but state, county and town races.
More than 1,000 absentee ballots have yet to be counted, though it is expected that next week’s official count will only affect the outcome of a too-close-to-call town board race in the Town of Delaware.
Below are the unofficial results, courtesy of the Sullivan County Board of Elections. Please note that only local results are listed, but a bolded name is the overall (i.e., national, statewide, etc.) race’s winner, and an asterisk denotes the incumbent:

U.S. President

Barack Obama (D) 15,850
John McCain (R) 13,312
Ralph Nader (Populist) 406
Bob Barr (Libertarian) 74
Cynthia McKinney (Green) 71
Roger Calero (Socialist) 26
Gloria La Riva (Socialism) 14

U.S. Congress
22nd Congressional District

Maurice Hinchey (D)* 16,733
George Phillips (R) 8,160

NYS Supreme Court
Third Judicial District

Patrick McGrath (D) 11,896
Anthony Carpinello (R)* 10,700

NYS Proposition 1

Yes 7,029
No 2,129
Gives additional Civil Service points to veterans who have been disabled in the performance of duty.

NYS Senate
42nd Senatorial District

John Bonacic (R)* 13,898

NYS Assembly
98th Assembly District

Aileen Gunther (D)* 20,099

Sullivan County Coroner
(three seats open)

B. Elton Harris (D)* 15,258
Thomas Warren (R)* 12,032
Michael Speer (R)* 11,890

Bethel Town Board

Denise Frangipane (D) 993
Margaret Hazen (R) 422
Ted Yeomans (Keep Ted)* 312

Cochecton Town Board

Edwin Grund (R) 367
John Reggero (D)* 306

Delaware Town Board

Cindy Herbert (R) 473
Jim Hughson (D) 466

Delaware Town Justice

Eric Nystrom (D) 566
Adrienne Ruggieri-Hoffer (R) 346

Fallsburg Town Clerk

Donna Akerley (D)* 2,608

Highland Town Justice

Anthony LaRuffa (D,R)* 901

Lumberland Proposition

No 279
Yes 238
Would have established a defined benefit Service Awards Program for qualified firefighters in the Lumberland Fire Departments.