MAHONING COUNTY Election board updates totals

An Austintown issue escaped a mandatory recount.
By DAVID SKOLNICK
VINDICATOR POLITICS WRITER
YOUNGSTOWN -- Robert Carcelli doubled his lead over incumbent Danny Thomas Jr. in the race for Struthers council president after the Mahoning County Board of Elections added provisional ballots to the vote totals.
Though Carcelli extended his lead to 12 votes over Thomas, there will still be a recount because the margin of victory is 0.4 percent. Any race with a margin of victory of 0.5 percent or less gets automatic recounts.
"I'm pleased with the results and the job the elections board did," Carcelli said. "I'm ready to take over in January. We can expect some changes" in city government.
Carcelli, a former councilman-at-large, was leading Thomas by six votes at the end of Election Day. The elections board on Tuesday counted provisional votes -- those cast by people who moved and failed to register at their new address before the voter registration deadline.
Carcelli picked up 12 provisional votes to six for Thomas.
Expected it
"I knew it was going to go up," said Thomas, who previously stated he didn't think the provisional votes would help him. "It was what I expected."
The elections board will meet Thursday to certify the election results, and to set a date for recounts for Struthers president and for the fourth and final seat on the Youngstown Board of Education.
Kathryn Hawks Haney extended her lead for the fourth school board spot over Joyce Lomax to 119 votes after the provisionals were counted; she was winning by 114 before Tuesday. That is still within a 0.50 of 1 percent margin of victory, and triggers an automatic recount. But election officials say it is highly unlikely they will find enough errors on ballots to change the outcome of that race.
Austintown bond issue
The Austintown school bond issue to build a new school will no longer face an automatic recount. The bond issue won by 52 votes on Election Day, or 0.46 of 1 percent. But it won the provisional votes 61-23, thus extending its margin of victory to 0.8 of 1 percent; no longer within the automatic recount threshold.
"It was kind of like playing a game and at the end, not knowing the results," said Stan Watson, Austintown's superintendent of schools. "We had to wait a while to find out. We were all very anxious. We all had anxiety over what was going to happen. Now, it's just elation and thanks to the community for its support."
Tight township trustee races in Ellsworth and Smith will also not be the subject of automatic recounts with the provisionals counted in the vote totals.
In Ellsworth, William A. Spellman extended his lead over Trustee Steve Martin from 5 votes to 8 votes. Spellman's margin of victory is 1.04 percent.
Smith Trustee Valas W. Winters increased his lead over challenger Robert M. Rinehart from 7 votes to 10 votes. Winters' margin of victory is 0.93 of 1 percent.
skolnick@vindy.com