Close Races For Council, P&Z Seats Spurs Recounts

By John Voket

A recount in three local races commenced Wednesday morning after balloting for two Legislative Council and one Planning and Zoning seat triggered state criteria mandating the procedure. The Newtown Registrars of Voters office, aided by more than a dozen sworn recount volunteers, began the meticulous task of examining every ballot cast in Districts 1 and 3, and verifying the counts for each office in every race, according to Democratic Registrar LeReine Frampton.

“State law mandates we must complete the recount within five business days after the election, but we wanted to have the information for people as soon as possible,” Ms Frampton said. “Unfortunately, we have to examine every single ballot cast in both of those districts, not just the three races involved.”

According to state law, she explained, recounts are mandatory in situations where candidates are separated by less than half of one percent of the total voters voting in the election, or there is a difference of 20 votes or less between a winning and losing candidate in any single race.

The District 3a and 3b Council races involve Republicans Jeffrey Capeci who received 699 votes, Republican Constance Widman who received 685 votes, and Independent Party of Newtown candidates Robert Murray, Jr, who received 698 votes and Brendan J. Duffy who received 682 votes.

A single vote separated Mr Murray and Mr Capeci after final balloting closed on Election Day.

In District 1, the single race between Republican John Aurelia with 735 votes and Democrat Frank Scalzo with 733 votes justified the recount. In the P&Z race, the less than one percent between fellow Democrats Robert H. Poulin and Richard A. English, who received 2,900 and 2,923, respectively, justified that review.

The process of conducting the recount was aided by volunteers, Ms Frampton said, many of whom stayed at Town Hall South for nearly 14 hours Wednesday before being sent home. While Republican registrar Karin Aurelia was forced to recuse herself from involvement in any matters related to the District 1 recount, which involves her husband, the process still moved efficiently throughout the day, Ms Frampton said.