Serving the High Plains
Serving the High Plains
New Mexico’s State Canvass Board last week ordered recounts of close races for the Logan Village Board and San Jon school board from last month’s local elections.
Quay County Clerk Ellen White said her officers will begin hand-counting ballots in those races starting at 9 a.m. Wednesday in the 10th Judicial Circuit courtroom at the Quay County Courthouse in Tucumcari.
In the Logan race, one vote separates Deanna Osborn and Wesley Brian Cox as the winner or loser for a second and final seat on the village board.
In preliminary results, Osborn totaled 122 votes and Cox 121.
TJ Smith captured one seat on the Logan board with 142 votes. Kerry James Cross finished out of the race with 108 votes.
Cox, appointed to the village board in late spring after the departure of Leslie Osborn, said he’s been tracking results of the race by periodically updating the New Mexico Secretary of State’s website.
“It gives me a little excitement,” he said in a phone interview. “I’m hopeful, I’ll say that.”
Cox indicated he wouldn’t be crestfallen if he loses.
“I know Deanna,” he said. “She’s always been awesome to us. There is no hard feelings about this.”
Osborn said she hasn’t been bothered by the race between her and Cox being in limbo for several weeks.
“To be honest with you, I haven’t given it much thought,” she said last week in a phone interview. “From what I hear, Mr. Cox was filling a seat on the council and doing a great job. Whichever way (the recount) goes, I’m good with it.”
For the San Jon school board, fewer than 10 votes separated Eddie Ray Behrends (63 votes) and incumbents Dale Bone (61) and Brian Watson (56). Two seats on the board were to be decided in that race.
Mandatory recounts are ordered for any races where five votes or fewer, or less than 1% of the total ballots, separate the candidates.
White said she and her officers will hand-count the first 100 ballots of both races. If no discrepancies are found, the rest of the ballots will be tallied by machine.
She anticipates the recounts will require up to two hours to complete. The public can watch the process.
The clerk’s office also was ordered to perform a voting system check for three races in Precinct 10 in north Tucumcari, selected by an auditing firm, after the other recounts are completed.
Those races will be hand-counted, as well.
White said those are part of random election checks ordered statewide by the canvass board.
The state canvass board last week unanimously certified the results of the Nov. 7 election. About 20.5% of New Mexico voters cast ballots. Quay County’s turnout was 26.7%, one of the highest in the state.