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There will no longer be a recount for the East Lansing School Board election.
Following Wednesday's Open Meeting of the Ingham County Board of Canvassers, which ELi reported had set worker wages and recount cost estimates, Noel Garcia has chosen to withdraw his recount petition.
In a press release, Garcia now says, “I hope my supporters understand that although I felt we had an opportunity to be part of the process to help improve elections in Ingham County, I could not bear the thought of putting a bill on the superintendent’s desk for up to $20,000 with my name associated with it. Our teachers and students need those dollars to be spent in the classroom and not on a re-count.”
According to a press release from Ingham County Clerk Barb Byrum, the recount was estimated to cost between $14,927 and $22,384, before additional expenses such as supplies, chair and table rentals, and food for workers. East Lansing Public Schools would be responsible for this cost.
In a statement sent shortly after Garcia withdrew his petition, Byrum says some costs have already been incurred and will be the responsibility of East Lansing Public Schools. While she stressed costs are being mitigated as much as possible, costs associated with Wednesday’s meeting, supplies, and already-rented tables, chairs, pallets total approximately $1,600.
Garcia originally filed a recount petition after coming in only 39 votes behind his closest competitor in the School Board race, Kath Edsall. Garcia cited concern over errors made in the voting process, including confusion over the School Board ballot reported by WILX.
The East Lansing School District includes parts of Lansing, Lansing Charter Township, Meridian Township, and Bath Township, and according to WILX, “The first 122 voters who showed up at Foster Community Center in Lansing were given East Lansing School District ballots, but 88 of those people were not East Lansing residents.”
In a Facebook post regarding the recount, Garcia stated that the “differential is less than 2 votes per precinct” and that he wanted to “make sure that votes weren’t missed and that the results are accurate.”
Garcia continued that he is “not accusing anyone of intentional errors or mistakes” and that “[i]n the end this is really not about winning or losing. Rather it is about ensuring that our machines that support our democracy are accurate and fair.”
Garcia’s withdrawal of the recount petition comes after Byrum said repeatedly that it could be withdrawn. Byrum told ELi and stressed again in her Wednesday press release that she was trying to “contain costs, so that the recount may be conducted both fairly and efficiently.”
In Byrum’s Thursday e-mail, she noted that she and her staff “spent a great deal of time explaining the elections process, details about the administration of recounts, and how votes are certified.”
She continued that it has become apparent the average person is not aware of the amount of work involved in administering elections and is “considering conducting an Election Administration Academy to prepare our future Election Administrators and educate citizens about the elections process to make sure each vote is safely and securely counted in Ingham County.”
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