Tie in tax collector's race results in recount

By By Steve Gillespie / staff writer
Nov. 11, 2003
Newton County election commissioners will recount all of the votes cast Nov. 4 in the county tax collector/assessor's race.
L.D. Rigdon, chairman of the Newton County Election Commission, said today that the votes will be recounted because a final tally including absentee and affidavit ballots resulted in a tie on Monday.
Unofficial election results on Nov. 4 listed Nancy Darlene Kidd, a Democrat, with 3,782 votes and Geraldine Seal, a Republican, with 3,766 votes.
Some absentee ballots had errors on them concerning the county coroner candidates but Rigdon said it did not affect that race. Those ballots, however, had to be counted by hand. He also said 11 affidavit ballots were put in a ballot box by pollworkers instead of in the proper envelopes; they may be invalid.
Rigdon said an unofficial total after going through absentee ballots and affidavit ballots shows 3,803 votes for each candidate.
Seal said she has confidence the election commission and circuit clerk's office is doing its best to determine the outcome of the election.
Kidd, who was contacted at home this morning, referred all questions to Rigdon.