Voters Pack Polls Late Tuesday

With election results coming in late Tuesday night, many Syosset residents made it to the polls just in time.

The turnout at and Berry Hill elementary schools left some people surprised and relieved that Syosset residents were getting out and exercising their right to vote.

"It's been heavy and constant, a pretty good turnout," said Mike Sardo, poll coordinator at Berry Hill. "It started this morning, now it's 8:30 p.m. and it's still going."

Stella Raptis, a poll volunteer from Hicksville, was needed for help at Berry Hill Tuesday and she said the turnout was excellent.

"I'd say, more than 1,000 people came out," Raptis said.

Voters were assigned different booths depending on the district they live in. New machines were said to have caused on in the evening, but Sardo said he knew of no such problems.

"There haven't been any problems I know of," Sardo said. "It's just new so you had to get used to it."

Richard J. Danyko, a lawyer from Syosset, was coming home from his job in the city when he arrived at the polls at around 8:30 p.m. He said he personally did not have any problems with the new system.

"It was relatively smooth, kind of like taking the SAT's," Danyko said. "You fill in the blank and make the best choice. I had no problem, I filled it out and it was self-explanatory."

At Robbins elementary, Theresa Morale was one of the last people to leave the polls after she cast her vote at around 9 p.m. While she said she didn't have any problem with the new system, she saw that some other people did.

"Somebody in front of me made a mistake, she marked it twice in the same column," Morale said. "They told her that it wouldn't count."

Morale said she had no problem voting, and was happy to see the great turnout.

"It went smooth," Morale said. "I always vote at this time, and I can say that it's been busier than usual."