DA challenger Courtney Booth will wait on all votes before possible recount

ASHEVILLE - Courtney Booth, a challenger for the District Attorney position in Buncombe County, said she'll wait until all provisional and absentee ballots are counted before deciding whether to ask for a recount.

At the end of primary election day, with all 80 precincts reporting, District Attorney Todd Williams had 34.78% of the vote, while Booth tallied 34.28%, according to unofficial results. North Carolina law states a candidate is eligible to call for a recount if the difference in votes is less than 1% of the total votes cast.

Booth, an assistant public defender, said via text late on May 18, she's waiting for all votes, including provisional and absentee ballots, to be counted.

"I am neither conceding, nor promising victory in this close race," Booth said. "I ran for this office, because I knew we had the power of the people to seek progress and reform. I’m most grateful for our community’s strong voter turnout."

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Williams garnered 10,824 votes, Booth 10,669 and third-place finished Doug Edwards 9,235, according to unofficial results.

"Every voice should be heard and every vote should and is still being counted," Booth said in her May 18 text. "The democratic process is at work and I will patiently and graciously await the official canvass on May 27."

Buncombe County Election Services Director Corinne Duncan said a formal request for a recount is due by noon May 31. A candidate must file the request for a recount with the North Carolina Board of Elections, which then passes it on to the county, Duncan said.

"The recount would be done after the canvass," Duncan said. "We need to process those provisional and mail-in absentee ballots to ensure that it is actually eligible for a recount. So we have to wait for final results to come in, recheck that there is eligibility for a recount and get a formal request through the state board."

The canvass is scheduled for May 27.

Williams was elected district attorney in 2014 in his first attempt at elected office, sworn into office in January 2015 and reelected in 2018. Before becoming the top prosecutor, Williams was a public defender and a capital defender, representing defendants against murder charges.

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Williams issued a post-primary statement May 17, thanking his supporters and touting his achievements. On May 18, he sent a text about the potential for a recount.

"I support the process that's in place and the work that is ongoing to confirm the official results in the district attorney's race and all races that were on the primary ballot," Williams said.

Edwards, a former assistant district attorney, finished in third place, with 29.68% of the vote. Local attorney Joe Bowman was on the ballot but had dropped out of the race.

Booth was born and raised in West Virginia and moved to North Carolina at age 17 to attend Salem College, a liberal arts college for women. She decided to stay in North Carolina, graduating from the North Carolina Central University School of Law in 2005.

Booth has worked in the Buncombe County Public Defender's Office for 17 years.

Born in Winston-Salem, Williams graduated from UNC Chapel Hill with a degree in English, then attended Northeastern University Law School. Williams moved to Buncombe County in 2000 and lives in Asheville.

This article originally appeared on Asheville Citizen Times: DA challenger Courtney Booth will wait on all votes before recount