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3 Mahoning races to have recounts
YOUNGSTOWN — Don’t think your vote counts?
Tell that to John A. Wilaj and Lori Carlson.
Wilaj, an incumbent Lowellville school board member, is clinging to a one-vote lead for the third and final spot on the board.
The Mahoning County Board of Elections counted provisional ballots and “late” absentee votes Wednesday.
Late absentees are ballots postmarked no later than Nov. 2, the day before the election, that had to be at the board of elections by last Friday.
Provisional ballots are cast by people who move into a voting district no more than 30 days before an election, those who change their name (typically through marriage) without notifying the board of elections or fail to provide a valid form of identification when they go to the polls.
Before Wednesday, Wilaj led Carlson by four votes, 529 to 525.
Wilaj picked up one provisional vote and no late absentees, and Carlson received two provisional votes and two late absentees.
By state law, if a candidate wins a race by 0.5 percent or less, there is an automatic recount.
Wilaj’s margin of victory is 50.14 percent to 49.86 percent.
The Lowellville race is one of three that will have automatic recounts.
The board of elections will meet next Tuesday to certify the official results and set a date for recounts on the three races.
That recount, by state law, must be no earlier than five days and no more than 10 days after the board certifies the results.
The board opened the provisional and “late” absentee ballots Wednesday.
The two other races that will have automatic recounts are:
UBoardman Local Board of Education: John Landers had 5,558 votes for the third and final spot on the board compared with incumbent Niklaus Amstutz with 5,543 votes.
Landers extended his lead to 21 after picking up 37 provisional votes and two late absentees compared to 33 provisional votes and no late absentees for Amstutz.
Landers’ margin of victory is 50.09 percent to 49.91 percent.
UCampbell City Board of Education: Diane Petruska increased her previous 6-vote lead — 1,274 to 1,268 — over Crystal Elash to seven votes for the third and final spot on the board.
Petruska received four provisional votes and three late absentee votes compared to four provisionals and no late absentees for Elash.
Petruska leads Elash 50.14 percent to 49.86 percent.
During a recount, absentee and provisional ballots are counted by hand.
Also, whole precincts whose vote totals equal at least 5 percent of votes cast on Election Day on electronic, touch-screen machines must be counted by hand using the machines’ paper count.
If the hand count and the machine count aren’t exact, elections boards must hand-count every vote in that race.
skolnick@vindy.com