After more than 3 1/2 hours and 12 rounds of voting, longtime Suffolk Democratic Party Chairman Rich Schaffer defeated challenger Katherine Casey Quigley to secure another two-year term as leader of the party.

The closely watched contest, a rare competitive race for the leadership of the Suffolk Democratic Party, highlighted divisions within the organization but also underscored the shared goal of electing Democrats in November.

Casey Quigley supporters showed solidarity throughout the evening by dressing in pink, while votes alternated back and forth between the two candidates during successive rounds of balloting.

Casey Quigley swept her hometown of Southold, where she serves as Democratic leader. She also performed strongly in Huntington, Islip and Brookhaven. However, Schaffer maintained support in many of those same areas and ran up large margins in Babylon, where he serves as town supervisor.

Following his victory, Schaffer praised his opponent and called for unity heading into the general election.

"It was probably one of my toughest campaigns," Schaffer said. "She made me a better person and a better leader in terms of the issues that she brought up and the enthusiasm she brought to the table. We want to now harness that, bottle it, and put it on all of our candidates so that we can elect Democratic congresspeople, state legislators and local officials."

With fewer than six weeks remaining until Election Day, Schaffer said the party's focus now shifts to the November general election.

Political consultant Mike Dawidziak said Democrats will need to put aside internal differences if they hope to be successful in November.

"Both sides want to elect Democrats, so the goal is the same," Dawidziak said. "Basically, it's smart and it's necessary for them to work together at this point."

The outcome keeps Schaffer at the helm of the Suffolk Democratic Party as Democrats prepare for a critical election cycle across congressional, state and local races.