State Sen. Antonacci elected to 1 of 3 State Supreme Court seats

SYRACUSE, N.Y. — Unofficial election results show State Sen. Bob Antonacci as one of three winners for open seats on the State Supreme Court's 5th Judicial District.

Antonacci, a Republican, who was elected to the NYS Senate only a year ago and surprised many by running for the position, had strong name recognition heading into the race and received 89,274 votes, which secured him the third open seat.

These numbers do not include absentee ballots and it's unclear how many there are to be counted in the 5th Judicial District.

His election means that the Syracuse area will be left without a state senator for up to a year depending on when Gov. Cuomo calls for a special election to fill the vacancy.

Otherwise, his replacement will be chosen on Election Day 2020.

Incumbent Justice Bernadette Romano Clark easily won re-election for her spot on the bench, with 154,711 votes. She received 32 percent of the vote, the most of any candidate.

Republican Joe Lamendola, a lawyer in Syracuse who is a retired U.S. Aire Force colonel, also came in the top three spots with 89,707 votes.

The judgeship has a 14-year term and pays $208,000 a year.

Lawyer Julie Cerio and Syracuse City Court Judge Rory McMahon came in fourth and fifth place, respectively.