Richmond County Board certifies June 16 runoff after resolving provisional ballots and minor discrepancies

The Richmond County Board of Elections voted to certify the results of the June 16 general primary and nonpartisan runoff at a special meeting held to prepare for county certification and to consider provisional ballots. The board accepted staff tallies, resolved a small number of provisional ballots and directed returns to the state for final certification.

Travis, a staff member, walked the board through a voter-comparison spreadsheet and explained two local discrepancies. He described a check-in mismatch in precinct 703 where “one more person checked in than actually we had a ballot,” recounting that a couple arrived, the woman was found not eligible and the man “said he was going to refuse to vote, and he left the polling place,” leaving staff unable to cancel his check-in during the commotion. At precinct 707 staff found an extra white envelope with no ballot inside after separating the security envelope, accounting for an absentee-by-mail discrepancy.

Katina, a staff member, presented grouped provisional-ballot reports and recommended a disposition for each group. For group 3A — five provisional ballots cast after 5 p.m. by voters who presented at the wrong precinct — staff recommended duplicating the ballots and counting the eligible races; the board voted to do so. For group B — two provisional ballots where the voters had already voted during advance voting — staff recommended rejecting the two ballots after reviewing voter certificates and signatures; the board voted to reject them. In total, five provisional ballots were added to the official tally and two were rejected.

With those adjustments, staff reported the official total of 27,198 votes and a turnout of 20.72 percent. The board read the completed returns into the record, including mayoral totals (Steven Kendrick 14,654, Garnett Johnson 12,349) and other contests, and a motion to certify the results carried in open session.

The board signed three returns (Republican primary, Democratic primary and nonpartisan) and instructed staff to transmit the certification documents to the state for final certification. Officials noted that winners in nonpartisan races will assume office on Jan. 1, 2027. The board also discussed operational lessons from the runoff, including HVAC problems at a Providence polling site where staff rented a one-ton blower and deployed two scanners to speed throughput.

The certification concludes the county’s administrative role; final state certification will follow once the state’s office completes its review.