Santos Declared Winner Over Zimmerman In 3rd Congressional District

LONG ISLAND, NY — Voters went to the polls on Tuesday to choose the new Congressman from New York's 3rd Congressional District. Robert Zimmerman (D) and George Santos (R) are both seeking their first term in Congress.

Zimmerman led Santos until 11 p.m., when Santos took the lead.

At 12:30 a.m. Santos and supporters began to celebrate, and at 12:53 a.m. Newsday called the race for Santos.

At 1:23 a.m., AP also declared Santos the winner.

The election means a flip for for Thomas Suozzi's seat from blue to red.

George Santos wins #NY03. pic.twitter.com/1VUdgmqBgm
— Lianna Farnesi (@farnesi) November" class="redactor-linkify-object">https://twitter.com/farnesi/st... 9, 2022

As of 12:54 a.m., with 100 percent of the votes in, the vote tallies were:

Robert P. Zimmerman — 120,060 votes

George A.D. Santos — 142,017 votes

In Nassau County, Santos won 55 percent of the vote. Zimmerman performed better in Queens but not enough to secure a win.

We did it! #NY03 has spoken! I promised one thing throughout this entire campaign: to be your champion in DC. Thank you for this opportunity to be your voice! pic.twitter.com/xqdQaKGfIm
— George Santos (@Santos4Congress) November" class="redactor-linkify-object">https://twitter.com/Santos4Con... 9, 2022

The 3rd Congressional District seat is being vacated by Thomas Suozzi (D) after his unsuccessful bid to get the Democratic nomination for New York governor.

The race between Zimmerman and Santos made national news, both because it was the first Congressional contest between two openly-gay candidates, and because polls showed a close race in a historically Democratic district.

According to Ballotpedia, the newly-redrawn district's registered voters are divided into 40 percent registered Democrats, 28 percent registered Republicans and 32 percent unaffiliated or third party. President Joe Biden won the district by 54 percent in 2020.

Zimmerman, 68, of Great Neck, owns a communication company. He served as a Democratic National Committee member and was nominated by President Clinton to the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts Presidential Commission on the Arts and to the National Council on the Humanities by President Obama.

George Santos, 34, of Queens, has a finance and investment background. He was also the Republican nominee in 2020. According to his official campaign biography "George is a seasoned Wall Street financier and investor."