Kim Senkeleski: provisionally waiting.
By DUSTIN RACIOPPI
Prior statements by the candidate aside, it’s possible Tuesday night’s borough council election results didn’t spell the end of campaign ’09 for Republican Kim Senkeleski after all.
Early Tuesday night, Senkeleski conceded to incumbent Democrats Art Murphy and top vote-getter Mike DuPont.
But the Asbury Park Press reported later in the evening that Senkeleski was considering a ballot recount because she had narrowed the gap.
Senkeleski denied that report when contacted by redbankgreen later that night.
But she changed her tune when she posted a comment yesterday on redbankgreen‘s election story, writing that because provisional ballots have yet to be counted, she will not admit defeat.
As of Wednesday, the tally of votes, including absentee ballots, looked like this, according to the Monmouth County government website: DuPont, 1,503; Murphy, 1,487; Senkeleski, 1,455; and Republican Rob Lombardi, 1,372.
With 32 votes separating her and Murphy for the second of two seats open on the council, Senkeleski said Wednesday that the count of provisional ballots would dictate whether she pushes for a recount.
Neither she nor deputy borough clerk Pamela Hughes Borghi knew how many provisional ballots there were to count.
But former Red Bank Mayor Ed McKenna, who heads the local Democratic party, said because of the questionable validity of provisional ballots, they’re often thrown out. Provisional ballots are typically for voters whose names don’t appear on election registration rolls or whose eligibility to vote is in question.
“In Red Bank, our history is that they have not been counted, they’ve been disqualified,” McKenna said.
And the ones that are counted, he said, usually are split between parties. If that’s the case when Red Bank’s provisional ballots are counted, that would seal a win for Murphy.
“It’s not a major concern to us,” McKenna said.
