AUBURN – Tuesday’s ballots will get a closer look next week as at-large City Council candidate Ron Potvin challenges the results.

Potvin lost the race for one of two at-large council seats at polls by a narrow 31 -vote margin on Nov. 7. Now City Clerk Mary Lou Magno has scheduled an official ballot inspection at 9 a.m. Tuesday in Auburn Hall. That’s the first step towards a full recount.

Ellen Peters easily won the first at large seat, with 4,063 votes. Incumbent Councilor Bob Mennealy won the second seat with 2,944 votes.

Potvin came in third, according to the city’s official results, with 2,913 votes.

It could be the first of two inspections this year. Ward 3 Candidate Dan Herrick said he has written a letter to the City Clerk asking for an inspection of Ward 3’s ballots.

“I’ll e-mail it to her Friday, so it’s on her desk when she gets in after the weekend, then I’ll hand-deliver a copy Monday morning,” Herrick said Friday. He had tried to deliver his copy Friday morning, but city offices were closed for Veterans Day observances.

Herrick lost to incumbent Eric Samson by 19 votes in the Nov. 7 ballot. Samson picked up 824 votes to Herrick’s 805, according to the official tally.

The city’s last ballot inspection happened two years ago in Ward 3, when Samson unseated then-incumbent Joe DeFilipp by 61 votes. Initial tallies that year showed Samson with 1,076 votes to DeFilipp’s 1,015. The inspection turned up 11 mis-marked ballots – not enough to change the outcome.

The city uses a six-year-old Accu-Vote system. Voters are required to fill in oval bubbles next to candidates’ names.

Copy the Story Link