Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Elections topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Washington County elections office resolves four tied 2025 primary races by lot
Summary
Washington County Elections Director Melanie Ostrander said staff resolved ties in four municipal primary races by drawing numbered balls, declaring winners and notifying write-in candidates of a July 7 paperwork deadline.
Melanie Ostrander, Washington County elections director, said the county resolved ties in four races from the 2025 municipal primary by casting lots at a public drawing and declared winners in Bergus Town, Deanston, Long Branch and South Scribe.
The procedure matters because the drawings determine which candidates will appear as the party nominees and, in the case of write-in candidates, which individuals must complete paperwork to remain on the ballot. "We have 4 races, and we have 16 numbered balls," Ostrander said, and she told write-in candidates that the packet of paperwork "has to be returned by, July 7 to our office."
At the Bergus Town Democratic contest for council, James McGee was declared the party nominee over Beth Hoppe after the drawing. Ostrander said Hoppe drew first under the alphabetical procedure and McGee drew the highest number and was declared the winner. The elections director provided winners with the paperwork that must be returned by July 7.
In Deanston's Republican council contest for a four-year seat, William Bechtold was declared the nominee. Ostrander said a county staff member drew on Bechtold's behalf; Kent, a county elections staff member, performed the draw.
Long Branch had a three-way tie for two Democratic council seats; Ostrander said the three candidates had each received 20 votes. Because two seats were available and only two candidates attended the drawing, Ostrander declared Walter Filipkowski and Douglas Dancer the winners after noting that Julie Buboff had not contacted the elections office and therefore forfeited the opportunity to participate in the lot drawing.
In South Scribe's Republican race for tax collector, Judith Panasic was declared the nominee after Laura Kiesling did not contact the elections office to participate and was treated as having forfeited the drawing.
Ostrander said the county proceeds alphabetically by municipality and by candidate last name when conducting the drawings, and that the candidate who pulls the highest number is declared the winner. She handed winners the paperwork they must return by July 7; she did not specify additional deadlines or subsequent steps in the transcript.
The elections office conducted the public drawings to break tied results from the municipal primary and recorded the outcomes on the record. The office advised write-in candidates to submit the required packet by July 7 to confirm their nominations.
