Preliminary election returns that appeared to have turned Democratic control of city offices on its head, giving Republicans four seats on the City Council, quickly evaporated Tuesday night when mail and early voting ballots were counted.

All Warwick incumbent members of the council, state Senate and House won reelection. Also, Democrats won the Wards 1 and 9 and the Senate District 31 races where non-incumbents faced contests.

The Democratic sweep on the local level was only broken by independent candidate Frank Picozzi, who garnered 59 percent of the vote to upset Mayor Joseph J. Solomon. The count, with some provisional and late mail ballots to be tallied Wednesday morning, was 25,809 votes for Picozzi and 17,524 for Solomon.

Dottie McCarthy, director of the Board of Canvassers, said Wednesday her office “would be lucky” to have everything to the state Board of Elections by 4 p.m. this Friday. Missing from the count are the provisional ballots, which McCarthy calculated weighed 130 pounds – or as she put it, “a lot” – plus mail ballots from drop boxes at each of the 27 polling locations and outside City Hall.

“Thank God it’s over,” she said of the election.

Solomon, who was not to be seen at the polls on Election Day, monitored returns from a room at the Hyatt Place Warwick Hotel.

He released the following statement Wednesday: “I’d like to thank everyone who has supported me. While this election didn’t go as we had hoped, we ran a fair race and stuck to the issues. I’d also like to thank my family, who has been by my side through it all.

“Being Mayor of Warwick is a tough job, but it’s also a great honor. While my tenure as Mayor is coming to a close, my commitment to this great city is as strong as ever. I’m proud of the progress we have made, and I know that I’m leaving our city in better shape now that it was two years ago. I wish my successor the very best of luck.”

Picozzi’s victory appeared to be a sure thing shortly after polls closed at 8 p.m. Picozzi volunteers at each of the city’s 33 precincts called or texted results to Picozzi headquarters in Buttonwoods as soon as they were read off and transmitted to the state Board of Elections. The disparity in the count giving Picozzi as much as a 70 percent lead seemed to be a trend that the mail ballots and early votes, which made up for nearly half of the overall votes cast, couldn’t reverse.

The mood was stunned optimism. The numbers were skewed so much in Picozzi’s favor that unlike other election night returns where a running total was closely watched, attention focused on individual polls that went for Picozzi. Solomon didn’t win a single poll in those early returns.

Former Mayor Scott Avedisian, who had his battles with Solomon when Solomon was on the council, posted results on an orange sheet – the signature color of the Picozzi campaign – taped to the wall. There weren’t cheers as customary on election night, but rather murmurs amongst the masked volunteers.

“I knew I had support. I didn’t know it was going to be like this,” Picozzi said.

Retired Warwick firefighter Al Torres kept a close eye on the totals while also watching other Warwick and statewide races on his phone. As Torres announced results, an incredulous Avedisian speculated the council could have as many as four Republicans. That all melted away by the end of the night with the counts from the mail ballots and early voters.

Consistently, Democratic candidates in a one-on-one contest with Republicans or independents won about 56 percent of the vote. That was the case in Ward 1, where William Foley, who had beaten incumbent Rick Corley in the Democratic primary, beat Scott Phillips. Timothy Howe had a similar plurality in Ward 3 in his contest with John Falkowski, as did incumbent Ward 6 Councilwoman Donna Travis in her contest with Thomas Trudell. In the four-way Ward 9 race, Democrat Vincent Gebhart took 41.6 percent of the vote while Republican Armand Lusi picked up 33.8 percent and independents Aaron Mackisey and Sean Henry garnered 16.1 and 8.4 percent, respectively.

While the results won’t change the political makeup of the council, Picozzi’s election could impact the selection of a council president. Had Solomon won reelection, Ward 8 Councilman Anthony Sinapi or Ward 7 Councilman Steve McAllister appeared to be strong candidates for the post being vacated by Steve Merolla, who lost his primary bid for the Senate District 31 seat.

But with Picozzi as mayor, Ward 5 Councilman Ed Ladouceur, who broke with party ranks and endorsed Picozzi, would appear to have newfound strength.

Asked what he thought, Ladouceur texted Wednesday, “we’ll see what happens.”

In the contested Senate races, incumbent and Senate Majority Leader Michael McCaffrey in District 29 beat Republican Jean Trafford. He won 65.2 percent of the vote to her 34.3 percent. The race was tighter in District 31 where Kendra Anderson, who won in a hard fought Democratic primary beat Republican Scott Zambarano for the seat being vacated by Erin Lynch Prata. Anderson won 54.1 percent of the vote to Zambarano’s 45.7 percent.

In the House races, incumbent and chair of Democratic State Committee Joseph McNamara won reelection in District 19, beating independent Patrick Maloney with 61.9 percent of the vote. In District 21, incumbent Camille Vella-Wilkinson beat Republican Ronald Loparto, gaining 59 percent of the vote. Joseph Solomon Jr. faced a tighter race in District 22 against independent challenger Gerald Carbone. Solomon won 51.6 percent of the vote.

With Barbara Ann Fenton-Fung beating House Speaker Nicholas Mattiello for District 15 in Cranston, attention quickly shifted to House Majority Leader K. Joseph Shekarcki, who didn’t face a challenge for reelection to District 23.

Before noon on Wednesday, members of the House were forecasting that Shekarchi had the votes to succeed Mattiello as Speaker.

Shekarchi announced his candidacy in a release.

“At the urging of many of my House colleagues, I am running for Speaker and humbly ask for the chamber’s support. With the help of my fellow representatives, I am committed to bringing reform to the chamber and empowering its elected members.  Together, we will tap into our colleagues’ ideas, talent, and experience; work to help our economy recover in a way that it works for all Rhode Islanders and protects our most vulnerable populations; and reform the way that business is done at the State House,” he wrote.

Shekarchi said he plans to nominate Rep. Christopher R. Blazejewski (D-Providence) to succeed him as House Majority Leader.

“Chris is a hard-working, thoughtful, and highly-respected colleague and lawyer who brings a wealth of energy and insight into many important issues facing our state,” said Leader Shekarchi. “I am proud to have Chris lead my team, and will work with him to empower our members and ensure that all voices in our Democratic caucus are heard.”

“I strongly support Joe for Speaker because he is 100% committed to making sure all voices are heard and opinions are fairly debated and considered,” Blazejewski said in the release. “Working together, our shared goals are to ensure that business is performed in a professional, respectful manner, and to enact reforms so all members are part of the legislative process in an open, fair, and transparent environment.  I ask my colleagues to join me in supporting Joe for Speaker.”

Shekarchi has represented District 23 in Warwick since 2012; Blazejewski has represented District 2 in Providence since 2010.