Recounts continue in 2 state races

The N.C. State Board of Elections has yet to finalize a winner in the races for state commissioner of agriculture and state superintendent of public instruction.

Now, the losing candidates in both races are asking for a recount.

"That does not mean that anything was wrong," said Johnnie McLean, deputy director of administration of the board.

McLean said any candidate has the right to request a recount if the margin between the winner and loser is less than 10,000 votes.

"It is a part of the process," she said.

In initial counts for state superintendent, Democrat June Atkinson beat her opponent, Republican Bill Fletcher, by about 9,000 votes.

And before the recount, Republican challenger Steve Troxler was beating out interim agriculture commissioner Britt Cobb by about 2,500 votes.

Much of this uncertainty is due to faulty voting machines in Carteret County. Because voter turnout exceeded the machines' memory, more than 4,000 ballots were tossed into the abyss of state elections.

While these 4,000 votes would not effect the presidential race, they could change the outcome of the races for state superintendent and head of the agricultural department.

The Carteret County one-stop votes were lost starting at voter number 3,006. This voter voted at 11:10 a.m. Oct. 22. From this point on, no other early vote in Carteret County was counted.

Officials say none of these votes can be retrieved.

When Carteret County purchased the machines, officials mistakenly thought they could hold more than 10,000 votes. The machines were only able to hold 3,005 votes.

The losing candidates in both races are asking for a recount.

McLean said a recount is not likely to make a difference. "You do not normally see any great swings in the vote," she said.

Some candidates also think a recount will have little impact on the race.

"It may vary some, but many of the BOEs have recounted," Atkinson said. "I think that a recount will be inconsequential."

But others still insist on the formality. "The important thing is that every vote is counted," said Marc Siegel, spokesman for Cobb in the race for agriculture commissioner.

The deadline to request a recount was noon Friday. The State Board of Elections will meet Wednesday to determine the final results of the election.

No recount was requested in the state auditor race, and Democratic incumbent Ralph Campbell conceded the race Wednesday to Republican Les Merritt. The margin between the two exceeded 10,000 votes.

Contact the State & National Editor at stntdesk@unc.edu.