By SANDY McGEE

CUMBERLAND - Three Town Council incumbents scored a victory Tuesday, but not before a lengthy fight from the underdogs.

The tally of votes on Tuesday revealed 9,142 for Higgins and 7,995 for Lemois. McLaughlin, whose name was not listed on the ballot, received 1,576 write-in votes.

“I’m very excited about being able to serve the town of Cumberland for the next two years,” Lemois said. “I’ve learned a lot in the past few months. I wish my opponent luck. He’s a great servant of the community.”

This particular Town Council race made headlines after the Democratic Primary in September, when a recount of primary ballots revealed a surprising tie between two candidates.

Lemois and McLaughlin each received 2,855 votes after the recount. Fellow incumbent and Town Council President Higgins was the frontrunner with 3,116 primary votes.

After reviewing a state statute, the town Board of Canvassers voted to refer the deadlocked race to the Democratic Town Committee, which later held a secret ballot that selected Lemois, the endorsed party candidate, as the winner.

McLaughlin, who took the issue to court, was denied a request for a preliminary injunction. He later decided to hold a write-in campaign.

Higgins, council president for the past two terms, is a lawyer and former member of the Cumberland School Committee. He is a trustee of the Boys and Girls Club of Cumberland and Lincoln and a member of the Knights of Columbus and the Democratic Town Committee.

Lemois, past president of the Berkeley Fire District, is employed as an operations manager for ASI Inc. in East Providence. He has attended Northeastern University in Boston.

In a separate race for Town Council, incumbent democrat Mia A. Ackerman arose victorious against her opponent and republican challenger Mark G. Dosdourian.

The tally of votes Tuesday revealed 2,176 for Ackerman and 1,038 for Dosdourian.

“I am very excited that I will be able to continue working for District 5,” Ackerman said on Tuesday evening.

The Town Council incumbent will now begin her second term in office.

Ackerman is a self-employed real-estate title examiner and a former member of the town Juvenile Hearing Board.

She is a volunteer for the Cumberland Land Trust, the Friends of Franklin Farm and the Cumberland Hill Elementary and North Cumberland Middle School PTOs. She is also a member of the Blackstone River Watershed Council.

She lives in town with her husband, Barry, and their two children.

Dosdourian, who was endorsed by the Republican Town Committee, is a project manager for a survey and septic system design company in Cumberland. He has lived in town for 19 years with his wife, Deborah-Jane.