Sebastian County Election Commission hears complaint about poll worker

Objections were raised at a Sebastian County Election Commission meeting Friday morning (Sept. 26) regarding a poll worker allegedly taking ballots home with her after the Sept. 17 school board election.

Sebastian County resident Peggy Godwin raised the objection Friday, alleging that a poll worker at the Witcherville polling site had taken ballots home the night of the election.

According to Election Commission Chairman Lee Webb, the poll worker in question had returned home with her husband to leave one of their two vehicles at the house before dropping off election results at the Greenwood courthouse.

Webb further stated that the poll worker was carrying electronic results in sealed boxes, meaning there would have been no way for her to have altered results.

While the Witcherville results were delivered to the Greenwood courthouse on election night, the numbers were not included in final unofficial results due to a computer error, Webb said, adding that it was caught during the verification process in the days between the election and certification of results Friday morning.

The final vote total added 24 votes in favor of candidate Billy Turnipseed, who lost to Rick Nicodemus 207-223.

The commission also approved the county's other school board elections, where the majority of races were unopposed. Even in unopposed races, Webb said a vote must be cast in order to approve candidates and millage rates. In the case of Lavaca's school board, one vote was cast for School Board President Perry Newman's unopposed re-election. If no one had showed up to vote, the seat would have been declared vacant.

In other business, the commission approved three provisional ballots for inclusion in final certified totals.

An additional 20 absentee ballots were not counted since picture identification was not included.