By Sam Foster

(UPDATE: More on NY-1 and results of NY-25)

NY-1’s absentee count should come to a conclusion today. NY-1 is about the only district still too close to call as Tim Bishop holds a small lead of 204 votes over Randy Altschuler after yesterday’s count. I’ll be updating this post until we have a final number today.

Nov. 23rd 3:15 PM: Tim Bishop emerges the winner at the conclusion of NY-1’s absentee vote count. Bishop leads 235 votes. No word yet on concession from Altschuler or if candidates will continue forward with their legal challenges.

Nov. 23rd 12:53 PM: No change in vote totals from Suffolk County recanvass, which completed today.

Nov. 23rd 12:40 PM: Noon vote count has Tim Bishop at 206 lead and only 750 absentee’s left to count.

News Day:

Rep. Tim Bishop (D-Southampton) maintained his lead in absentee ballot counting this morning, carrying a 206-vote lead over Republican Randy Altschuler into the Board of Elections lunch break, Bishop spokesman Jon Schneider said.

Altschuler’s spokesman, Rob Ryan, placed his candidate’s deficit at 217 votes.

On what figures to be the final full day of counting absentee and affidavit ballots in the First Congressional District race, incumbent Congressman Tim Bishop (D-Southampton) is reported to have more than a 200-vote lead over Republican challenger Randy Altschuler. The official numbers remain unknown because the Board of Elections has not released those tallies. Instead, members of both campaigns have been closely observing the counting process and sharing information with the press.

Bishop aide and Brookhaven Democratic Committee Chair Jon Schneider issued a press release saying the congressman leads by 206 votes after Monday’s counting, with 1,912 ballots left to tally. Altschuler spokesman Rob Ryan told TBR Newspapers Tuesday morning his candidate was down by 202 votes, with only 1,790 ballots left, based on Monday’s counting.

Ryan also mentioned a problem with military ballots, claiming the BOE originally sent an incorrect version of the ballot to military personnel and followed up with a second mailing with instructions to disregard the first ballot and use the corrected ballot. Ryan said 71 of the incorrect military ballots had been received as of Monday but not counted. BOE officials, he said, would wait until Nov. 24, the deadline for receipt of military ballots, before deciding if they would count the incorrect versions. Details of the military ballot errors were not immediately available and BOE commissioners did not return calls for comment.