Wading River fire commissioner candidate Glenn Erick has prevailed in his lawsuit contesting the fire district’s ballot count in the Dec. 10 commissioner’s election.
State Supreme Court Justice Ralph Gazillo ruled that eight of 10 ballots excluded by the district in its vote tally must be counted, Erick said in an interview this evening. The eight additional votes put Erick on top in his write-in campaign against incumbent commissioner Tim Deveny by a vote of 238 to 231.
“It comes down to the voter’s intention,” Erick said. “It’s importnt that everyone’s vote is counted.”
An election board appointed by the commissioners excluded 10 ballots from the count. Eight were excluded because the candidate’s name was not written in the area on the ballot designated for writing in a candidate’s name, according to papers filed with the court. Two were excluded because voters wrote the candidate’s last name only. The district election board put the incumbent ahead, 231-230.
The two ballots on which voters wrote only Erick’s last name were properly excluded, the court ruled, but the rest should be counted.
The district has 30 days to appeal the judge’s order. Its attorney could not immediately be reached for comment.
Erick said he hasn’t heard anything from the commissioners. “Their next meeting is the 14th, so I expect I’ll be called in to be sworn into office,” Erick said.
“I’m very relieved for everyone that it’s over, however it turned out. Of course I’m ecstatic that the decision went in my favor and I’m looking forward to assuming the post, to do the best possible job I can for the taxpayers of the district,” Erick said.
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