State Canvass Board orders recount in three San Juan County local election races

As expected, three races in San Juan County from the Nov. 7 election are headed for a recount after the New Mexico State Canvass Board ordered Tuesday that another tally be conducted of the ballots because of the thin margins involved.

The three San Juan County races are among 44 races across New Mexico in which the results were close enough for the board to order an automatic recount. The board is made up of Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, Secretary of State Maggie Toulouse Oliver and C. Shannon Bacon, chief justice of the New Mexico Supreme Court.

All other results from the Nov. 7 election were certified, meaning those winning candidates can be sworn into office.

In San Juan County, the races that will be recounted are the District 5 seat on the San Juan College Board of Trustees, the District 2 seat on the Central Consolidated School District Board of Education and the mill levy question for the Aztec Municipal School District.

The San Juan College board race was decided by a mere seven votes, with Beverly Taylor edging Judy Hale 866-859, while third-place finisher Catherine Thomas-Kemp secured 255 votes. Taylor won 43.7% of the vote, while Hale drew 43.4%.

More: Three San Juan County races could be headed for recount, clerk says

The race for the CCSD school board seat was even closer, with a margin of only two votes separating incumbent Gary Montoya (357 or 50.1%) from challenger Hoskie Benally Jr. (355, 49.9%).

The Aztec school mill levy question also was extraordinarily tight, with 701 votes (50.1%) cast against the measure 697 votes (49.9%) in favor of it.

San Juan County Clerk Tanya Shelby said she received the recount order for the three races during the evening of Nov. 28. She previously has said her staff would have seven days to conduct the recounts after they were ordered by the canvass board. The results of those recounts then would be submitted to the canvass board.

Close races are nothing new in San Juan County, Shelby has said, noting that several recounts have been triggered during her tenure as clerk. None of those recounts revealed a discrepancy between the initial count and the second count, she said.

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Voter turnout in San Juan County for the Nov. 7 election was comparatively light, with only 16.3% of eligible voters participating.

Toulouse Oliver, the secretary of state, said in a statement that New Mexico voters should feel confident about the election results certified by the canvass board.

“Hearty thanks to all the election administrators and poll workers across New Mexico who conducted this election with the efficiency and integrity for which they’re known, and I want to thank all the voters who turned out to make their voices heard.”

Mike Easterling can be reached at 505-564-4610 or measterling@daily-times.com. Support local journalism with a digital subscription: http://bit.ly/2I6TU0e.

This article originally appeared on Farmington Daily Times: New Mexico Canvass Board orders recount in three San Juan County races