LAFAYETTE, IN — The three-count lead for Republican incumbent state Sen. Spencer Deery stands after Tippecanoe County’s election certification on Friday, but election officials say they are prepping for a recount.
The Tippecanoe County Election Board voted to approve four provisional ballots, but none of those votes affected the Senate District 23 race, Tippecanoe County Clerk Julie Roush said. Two provisional ballots that would have affected that race were not valid because of signature issues and improper voter registration.
Mike Smith, Tippecanoe elections board staff member, said given the single-digit number of votes separating Deery from Republican primary challenger Paula Copenhaver, election workers are preparing for a recount.
“We have been on a couple of Zoom calls with the secretary of state’s office,” Smith said.
No formal request has been made yet for a recount, Smith said. Tippecanoe County was the last of six counties in District 23 to certify its election numbers.
Deery’s three-vote lead in the race came Wednesday after the Parke County Election Board accepted a single provisional ballot.
Provisional ballots counted Monday by the Fountain County Election Board gave Copenhaver two additional votes and Deery one additional vote, shaving Deery’s lead to three. But the Montgomery County Election Board counted its provisional ballots on Monday, too. Only one of them pertained to the 23rd District, and it went to Copenhaver, cutting Deery’s lead to two.
Parke County’s one provisional ballot bumped Deery up by one vote.
Election Board Chairman Randy Vonderheide said the slim back-and-forth margins for the District 23 race displayed the crucial role voters have in local elections.
“It shows the importance of voting,” Vonderheide said.
In Tippecanoe County, 17,958 voters showed up to vote in the primary out of 116,704 registered voters, according to data shared during Friday’s meeting. That equated to 15.4% voter turnout.
Of those voters, 7,171 opted for early voting.
Indiana law requires that all 92 Indiana counties certify their primary election by Friday, according to the secretary of state. Candidates may request recounts starting Friday.
Jillian Ellison is a reporter for the Journal & Courier. She can be reached via email at jellison@usatodayco.com.
This article originally appeared on Lafayette Journal & Courier: Deery’s 3-count primary lead stands in Tippecanoe Co.; recount expected
Reporting by Jillian Ellison, Lafayette Journal & Courier / Lafayette Journal & Courier
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