Recount filed in Assembly District 4 race

PALMER -- The Mat-Su Borough Assembly met to certify the municipal election Tuesday, but one race is still up in the air after a candidate in the race filed a recount.

Assembly incumbent Jody Simpson was sworn in Tuesday, after final tallies of questioned and absentee ballots cemented her win in the District 5 race. All told, Simpson took home 552 votes to her challenger, Barbara "Tamie" Miller's 279. The results of the three road- and fire-service area propositions that some voters saw on their ballots were also certified. Residents in the Wolverine Lake area of Lazy Mountain will be included in the Greater Palmer fire service area, while some residents in the Rolling Acres and Mission Hills areas of Meadow Lakes will not be added to the Meadow Lakes road service area.

The Assembly District 4 race, however, will not be sewn up until the end of the week. After absentee and questioned ballots were reviewed and counted, candidate Mary Kvalheim took the lead by eight votes over opponent Patrick Marley. But, citing questions about inconsistent vote tallies and a mix-up involving a ballot-reading machine, Marley, Tuesday afternoon, handed in an application for a recount of five of the eight precincts the District 4 assembly race spans.

Marley said Wednesday he didn't expect the recount to change matters significantly, but in a race with an eight-vote split, a few votes could make all the difference.

"Out of respect and duty to those who supported me, I'm going to ask for [a recount] if it's available," Marley said.

He brought up a new challenge that will be facing candidates over the next decade. Because of the timing of last year's redistricting efforts, the borough assembly district lines were drawn up before the state Division of Elections had clearance to draw up precinct lines. As a result, the lines are not nice and neat and, in the case of the Schrock precinct, election officials handed out five different ballots to voters from around the precinct. The number of precincts an assembly district crosses can make a difference to candidates seeking a recount, as candidates must offer a $100 deposit for every precinct recounted. Marley, with his application for a recount, handed over a $500 deposit and still won't have all the ballots in his race recounted. In some assembly races, that amount would cover a recount of every ballot.

"I don't think that's very fair," Marley said, "but I'm going to do it."

Mat-Su Borough Clerk Sandra Dillon told audience members at Tuesday's meeting the recount was scheduled to begin this morning. Dillon expects the recount to be finished by the end of the day. The results should be certified prior to the previously scheduled Oct. 15 assembly meeting, where the new candidate will be sworn in, seated and immediately begin voting on assembly decisions.