Before certifying the Nov. 5 general election results, the Licking County Board of Elections voted unanimously Monday to reject 654 ballots that did not meet requirements – about 200 more than four years ago.

A total 96,382 ballots were cast, representing a voter turnout of almost 75% of the county’s 128,657 registered voters.

Elections Board Director Brian Mead said after the meeting that he attributes the higher number of rejected ballots mainly to Ohio’s requirements for a photo ID, which were enacted after the last presidential election. 

Overall, election results didn’t change after absentee and provisional ballots were included in the final count, although Mead told the Elections Board on Nov. 18 that the elections staff anticipates conducting recounts of at least two levy issues because the results are so close. 

A levy in the Village of Gratiot was tied 34-34 before absentee and provisional ballots were counted. And after provisionals and absentees were counted in Licking and Muskingum counties, it was still tied at 49-49. If a tie remains after a recount, Mead said, the levy would fail, because a vote of 50% plus one is required for passage.

Because Gratiot is partly in western Muskingum County and partly in eastern Licking County, it is possible that the vote total could change when the Muskingum County Board of Elections certifies its results this week.

And in the Licking County Village of Hanover, a 3-mill, five-year levy for roads and bridges was losing by three votes after the results were certified, so because it is so close, that will also require a recount, Mead said.

Mead said it initially appeared recounts might be necessary for two issues in the Village of Buckeye Lake, but after provisionals and absentees were counted, the vote totals increased beyond the point of requiring a recount. A renewal levy for operating expenses was winning by 10 votes and the other, a replacement for police protection, was losing by 20. It’s a slight possibility that crossover votes from Fairfield County could change that, but Mead indicated that a recount there was unlikely.

Recounts are tedious and time-consuming, Mead said. Based on past experience, he does not expect results will change.

“In 18 elections I’ve done here, I’ve never seen results change in a recount,” he told the board. 

The chairs of both the local Republican and Democratic parties attended the meeting and praised the Elections Board and its staff for their work to ensure a smooth election under the pressure of a presidential election like few others.

Matt Dole, chair of the Licking County Republican Party, congratulated the elections team for moving quickly and effectively when even minor issues developed to keep lines moving and people voting.

“I don’t think this was without some stress,” said Marcia Phelps, chair of the county Democratic Party, who echoed Dole’s sentiments and said the elections team “did an outstanding job.”  

In explaining why ballots were rejected, Mead provided a breakdown of the reasons:

– 462 were cast by people who were not registered voters

– 117 had no photo identification, or their ID was expired

– 34 absentee ballots were postmarked after the deadline

– 31 voters went to the wrong precinct and voted using the wrong ballot

– 10 people voted twice, either by absentee ballot or during in-person early voting and again on Election Day.

Mead said that among those who voted twice, “some were older folks who sometimes vote early and forget that they already voted.”

And he said that those who voted in the wrong precinct using the wrong ballot “most likely moved and went to their old precinct” and were told they were at the wrong polling place and opted to vote provisionally at that location with the incorrect ballot.

Mead said an election audit will begin on Dec. 9. The hand recount of a percentage of the vote total is required by state law to ensure accuracy. Licking County will audit 5,000 ballots cast in the presidential race, the U.S. Senate race and a contested county race involving incumbent Republican Duane Flowers, who defeated Democratic challenger Bryn Bird for county commissioner.

The next Board of Elections meeting will be at 11 a.m. on Dec. 5 at the Licking County Administration Building, 20 S. 2nd Street in Newark.

Alan Miller writes for TheReportingProject.org, the nonprofit news organization of Denison University’s Journalism program, which is supported by generous donations from readers. Sign up for The Reporting Project newsletter here.

Alan Miller

Alan Miller teaches journalism and writes for TheReportingProject.org, the nonprofit news organization of Denison University's Journalism Program. He is the former executive editor of The Columbus Dispatch and former Regional Editor for Gannett's 21-newsroom USAToday Network Ohio.