It’s been a whirlwind November for Democrats across the country, marked by a string of unexpected victories at the ballot box, a surge in polling numbers, and, perhaps inevitably, a series of internal squabbles that threaten to overshadow their recent success. Nowhere is this complex picture more evident than in Riverhead, New York, where a razor-thin town supervisor race has become a microcosm of the party’s broader fortunes and challenges.
On Friday, November 21, 2025, Riverhead Democrats declared Jerry Halpin the winner of the Town Supervisor race, edging out incumbent Republican Tim Hubbard by a mere 37 votes. According to the Suffolk County Board of Elections, Halpin secured 3,956 votes to Hubbard’s 3,919—a margin so slim that state law mandates a manual recount, set to begin Monday, November 24, at the Board’s Yaphank headquarters. The recount, expected to take about a day, will determine whether Halpin’s win stands in a town that has long leaned Republican.
"The Riverhead Democratic Committee is proud to announce that Jerry Halpin has been elected the next Supervisor of the Town of Riverhead. This victory reflects the community’s desire for transparent, responsible, and forward-looking leadership," the Committee said in a statement to the press. The message was clear: Riverhead’s political landscape is shifting, even if only by a handful of votes.
Halpin, Pastor of North Shore Christian Church and a relative newcomer to the town’s political scene, ran on a platform of "servant leadership" and fiscal responsibility. He’s not registered with any political party—a fact that lent his campaign a certain outsider appeal, especially in a town dominated by Republican officeholders. Halpin’s wife, Kristen, a Long Island native and musician, helped found the church with him nearly thirty years ago, and the couple has deep roots in the community.
"I am truly honored that the voters of Riverhead have entrusted me to serve our community. It is with deep humility and gratitude that I step into the role of Riverhead Town Supervisor-Elect," Halpin said after the results were announced. He pledged to begin outreach immediately to civic groups, local businesses, and community partners, promising a "collaborative transition plan." Halpin emphasized that Riverhead’s future depends on everyone working together, regardless of party lines—a sentiment that seems particularly apt given the divided nature of the incoming Town Board, which remains entirely Republican aside from the supervisor’s seat.
The closeness of the race—and the fact that a Democrat could win in a Republican stronghold—has surprised many local observers. Republican Councilmen Bob Kern and Kenneth Rothwell were both re-elected, defeating Halpin’s running mates. If the recount confirms Halpin’s win, he will be tasked with leading a board that may not always share his priorities or vision for the town.
The political drama in Riverhead mirrors the national scene, where Democrats have been riding high on a wave of electoral victories but struggling to maintain unity. Early November saw Democrats outperform expectations in gubernatorial races in New Jersey and Virginia, with Mikie Sherrill and Abigail Spanberger winning by more than 14 and 15 points, respectively, according to Newsweek. Other states, including California and Mississippi, brought more good news for the party, fueling optimism ahead of the 2026 midterms.
But even as Democrats celebrated, internal disputes flared. The end of a recent government shutdown brought these tensions to the surface, as a handful of moderate Senate Democrats joined Republicans to pass a deal that preserved Affordable Care Act subsidies set to expire at the end of the year. While some Democrats saw the move as pragmatic, others accused their colleagues of caving to Republican demands without securing enough guarantees. Representative Ro Khanna even called for Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer’s ouster, labeling the deal the "final straw." Schumer, for his part, did not support the agreement.
Senator Jeanne Shaheen, who voted for the deal, lamented what she called a "circular firing squad" among Democrats, telling CBS News she faced heckling at a party event over her vote. The episode underscored the challenge facing party leaders: how to celebrate wins without being derailed by infighting.
Republicans, meanwhile, seized on the shutdown’s resolution as a victory for their party and President Donald Trump. A Fox News poll released midweek showed only 34 percent of Americans approving of congressional Democrats’ handling of the shutdown, compared to 35 percent for Republicans and 37 percent for Trump. The numbers, while close, suggest that Democrats’ internal divisions have not gone unnoticed by the public.
Other distractions have emerged as well. Democrats have pushed for the release of files related to Jeffrey Epstein, the financier who died in 2019 while awaiting sex trafficking charges. The House and Senate passed a bill compelling the files’ release, and Trump signed it into law, but the party’s messaging was muddled by more infighting—including a resolution introduced by Representative Marie Gluesenkamp Perez condemning a retiring colleague’s last-minute maneuver to secure a ballot spot for his chief of staff. The move drew criticism from fellow Democrats, who argued that the party should focus on its legislative achievements instead of public disputes.
Adding to the turmoil, Florida Democratic Representative Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick was indicted for allegedly stealing FEMA funds, though she has called the charges "baseless" and maintains her innocence. The incident, while not directly linked to broader party strategy, has nonetheless contributed to the sense of distraction and disunity.
Despite these challenges, political experts caution against reading too much into the party’s squabbles. Grant Davis Reeher, a professor at Syracuse University, told Newsweek that "the real question is whether the party will be able to navigate a pretty big divide in policy positions and rhetorical emphasis going into 2028." For the 2026 midterms, however, he expects Democrats to weather the storm, as "the Internet chatter on these kinds of things is still driven by the legacy media, for the most part." Robert Y. Shapiro, a political scientist at Columbia University, agreed that it’s too soon to gauge the impact of the infighting, noting that Democrats are still polling well nationally.
Back in Riverhead, the immediate focus is on the manual recount—a reminder that every vote truly does count. As Riverhead Republican Party Chairwoman Tammy Robinkoff put it, "It was a very close race, so every vote matters." For Halpin, the task ahead is clear: "I want to put everyone’s mind at ease that I want our town to grow and be just as beautiful and wonderful on Jan. 1 as it is today, and I want to live up to the promises that I made."
Whether in small-town New York or on the national stage, Democrats are finding that victory is only the first step. The real test, as always, will be how they govern—and whether they can keep their house in order long enough to make those wins count.
