Julie Walsh, Marsha Herbert and Sharon Wilhide hold the top three spots in the race for three seats on the Carroll County Board of Education after the county counted about 6,000 more mail-in ballots Thursday.
Walsh moved from third place on election night to first. Herbert, who led on election night, is now second. Wilhide moved from fourth to third, passing Shannon Hinkhaus by 199 votes, according to unofficial results posted by the Maryland State Board of Elections Thursday evening. On election night, Hinkhaus led Wilhide by 1,171 votes.
The results are unofficial. The Carroll County Board of Elections will review provisional ballots Nov. 12 and count the remaining mail-in ballots Nov. 13, when it plans to certify the results.
Voters could choose up to three candidates in one countywide race, and the three candidates with the most votes win seats.
Where the race stands
Candidate | Total | Added Thursday |
|---|---|---|
Julie V. Walsh | 27,693 | +2,615 |
Marsha B. Herbert | 27,288 | +1,676 |
Sharon Wilhide | 27,144 | +2,843 |
Shannon Hinkhaus | 26,945 | +1,473 |
Lisa Maisano | 25,419 | +2,728 |
Cleveland Christopher Friday | 23,263 | +1,267 |
The votes added Thursday match results printouts posted at the Carroll County Board of Elections.
Why the race changed
The shift came from who voted by mail.
On election night, Hinkhaus had received the most in-person votes of any candidate, about 24,300 counting early voting and Election Day. Wilhide had received the most mail-in votes.
Thursday’s ballots followed the same pattern. Wilhide received more votes than any other candidate, and more votes than Hinkhaus in each of the seven results printouts the board posted.
Maryland counts mail-in ballots in rounds, before and after Election Day. The totals released Tuesday night included early voting, Election Day voting and the mail-in ballots counted up to that point. Mail-in ballots that the board hadn’t yet counted were added Thursday, which is why races can shift in the days after the polls close.
Election workers review mail-in ballots Thursday, Nov. 5, at the Carroll County Board of Elections in Westminster. The board counted about 6,000 ballots in the first post-election count.
What’s left to count
Provisional ballots, Nov. 12: Voters cast provisional ballots when their eligibility couldn’t be confirmed at the polls, including some voters who had requested a mail-in ballot and voted in person instead. The board reviews each one before deciding whether it counts. No provisional ballots have been included in the results so far.
Remaining mail-in ballots, Nov. 13: Under Maryland law, mail-in ballots count if they were postmarked by 8 p.m. on Election Day and received by the local board by 10 a.m. on the second Friday after the election. The board plans to count them and certify the results that day.
Other local races
Thursday’s count narrowed the margins in Carroll County’s other contested races, but the same candidates lead.
County commissioners
District 1: Republican Joe Vigliotti 9,522, Democrat Aaron M. Goldsmith 4,336
District 3: Republican Tom Gordon 7,049, Democrat Dennis E. Frazier 5,358
District 5: Republican Susan W. Krebs 8,099, Democrat Megan Foelber 6,656
Republicans Kenneth A. Kiler (District 2) and Michael R. Guerin (District 4) ran unopposed.
Sheriff: Republican Jim DeWees 43,746, Democrat Gail F. Wickless 25,132
State Senate
District 5: Republican Justin Ready 31,076, Democrat Gary Foote 20,552
District 42 (Carroll portion): Republican Kevin Ford 12,167, Democrat Stephanie Popescu 6,146
House of Delegates
District 5 (three seats): Republicans Chris Tomlinson 29,200, April R. Rose 29,035 and Steve Whisler 28,090; Democrats Alison Rudolph 20,278, Dayana Bergman 19,573 and Courtney Alexa Welch 18,796
District 42C (Carroll portion): Republican Steve Patten 12,162, Democrat Corynne Courpas 6,244