LAKE COUNTY — The voters have had their say, but nothing is certain until 28 days from now, according to Registrar of Voters Diane Fridley. That”s how long she has to certify an election, Fridley explained Wednesday morning.
“I don”t call anything until it”s certified,” she said.
What remains to be done is to count the absentee and provisional ballots turned in at the polls. Fridley explained that absentee ballots returned to polling places and over the counter at the county Registrar of Voters office are still coming in to be counted, along with provisional ballots given at the polls to voters who had moved or spoiled their original ballot.
How those votes will affect the final count may vary depending on the closeness of individual races. This dynamic may become especially in the race for the three open seats on the Middletown Unified School District Board.
As of Wednesday morning when the mail ballot and polling place votes for all nine of Middletown”s voting precincts had been counted, the election results posted by the county Registrar of Voters office showed that the top three candidates were Jay W. Albertson with 18.4 percent of the votes, James S. Comstock with 17.8 percent and Yvette Sloan with 17.3 percent. Sloan leads candidate Thomas “Tom” Darms by 51 votes.
In the race for Redbud Health Care District Director, Zone 2, current counts show candidate Jo Bennett in the lead with 52.3 percent of the votes cast, a 37-vote lead over opponent Bill Fansler.
Likewise, the Lakeport City Council race remains too close to call. The most current numbers posted by Fridley”s office place Ronald Bertsch in the lead with 673 votes. Following Bertsch is Todd Falconer with 618 votes and James C. Irwin with 605 votes. The 13-vote difference between Falconer and Irwin could change with the absentee count, according to election officials, and the race”s ultimate outcome may not be known until the end of next week or later.
Fridley said she will know Thursday afternoon how many absentee and provisional ballots still need to be counted.
“When we”re through, we”re sure it”s done right,” said Fridley. She noted that accuracy in counting all votes is paramount in her job.
Once the absentee ballots returned at the polls and the provisional ballots are in, Fridley said staff will begin counting them next week.
Lake County”s final say in the race for US Representative-First District may not be swayed as much by the votes yet to be counted, however. Incumbent Mike Thompson took 62. 7 percent of the votes cast so far, representing a lead of 4,587 votes over John W. Jones, who currently has 32.6 percent of the total votes.
The top two contenders in the First District Assembly race are Patty Berg with 57.1 percent of the votes and a 2,932-vote lead over Ray Tyrone, holding 37.7 percent of the votes.
Contact Tiffany Revelle at trevelle@record-bee.com.
