Voters Unhappy with Stalled Development, Exit Polls Say

Voters said the lack of development at the Enterprise Park at Calverton and slow progress in downtown Riverhead were the major issues that swayed their decision in this election, according to a unscientific exit poll of voters on Election Day.

Voters who disclosed who they supported seemed evenly split between Democratic candidate for Town Supervisor Phil Cardinale, and incumbent Supervisor Sean Walter. However, nearly all cited either EPCAL or the slow revitalization of downtown as their reason for voting.

Liz Vaiana-Cavanagh, a 20-year resident of Riverhead, said she was frustrated by the lack of improvement in downtown Riverhead.

"Things haven't been happening," she said. "We've been waiting and waiting and waiting."

Vaiana-Cavanagh said that villages like Patchogue, Port Jefferson, and Westhampton are great examples of how to improve a struggling downtown. Riverhead politicians, she said, have made little progress.

Vaiana-Cavanagh said she voted for Walter, because "at least he did something."

"Cardinale had six years to do something," she said. "That's three terms and he did nothing."

Sandy Lee, a Riverhead voter who did not disclose her last name, said she voted for Cardinale because of "his intelligence and humor." However, Sandy Lee blamed both Cardinale and Walter for "screwing up" the EPCAL property.

Starr Ryder, a lifelong resident of Riverhead, said she's watched the town she grew up in fall into disarray.

"I hate to see the town the way it is," she said. "There's nothing for kids. You come out of the Aquarium and where are you going to go?"

Ryder said she was frustrated by politicians' promises of development with few results, like the "movie theater that's been 'going to open' for years." She said she voted for Cardinale because "we need people who care."

Another voter, who did not share his name, voted for Walter and said the poor economy has led to a lack of jobs around town.

"People are hurting bad," he said.

Some voters and election officials said that the new ballots this year were too confusing. One voter called the ballots "misleading."

Instead of using the mechanical voting system, the new ballots require voters to fill in circles using a pen, in a similar method to the Scantron tests used in public schools for state testing.

However, some voters have been confused by the system and have shaded in the wrong circles. And one election site began to run out of pens after they ran out of ink, according to John McIntyre, Assistant Coordinator for the Board of Elections at the John Wesley Village polling station.

"The majority would rather have the old system back," said Gennaro Esposito, an election inspector at the Glennwood polling place. "You can't make a mistake pulling down the lever."

Still, Esposito said the new system was both safer and faster.

"The old machines you could tamper with," he said. "These [machines] you really can't."