Atwater bond would have lost had his vote counted, man says 

By ROSALIO AHUMADA
MERCED SUN-STAR

Last Updated: February 11, 2005, 04:41:02 AM PST

ATWATER ? A McSwain-area resident claimed Thursday that his vote would have defeated a school bond measure in Tuesday's election ? if only he could have cast it.

Measure A passed by one vote, granting the McSwain Elementary School bond proposal victory on the district's third try. The bond sale would raise $2.5 million for school upgrades and expansion, and make the school eligible for $7.4 million in state funds.

The Merced County election office reported that 855 people, or 66.69 percent, voted in favor of Measure A, while 427 residents, or 33.31 percent, voted against it.

Officials said 1,283 ballots were turned in, but one voter didn't mark yes or no.

If that ballot had been marked with a no, Measure A would not have passed. It would have had 66.64 percent of the popular vote, rather than the two-thirds, or 66.67 percent, needed.

The voter claiming to have cast the nonvote asked that his name not be used. "I have to live around people who are for the measure," he said.

The man said he asked for a paper ballot Tuesday, but was directed by a poll worker to an electronic voting machine instead.

He said he was unfamiliar with the machines, and submitted his vote without marking yes or no. He said he asked to restart the process, but a poll worker told him his vote had been canceled.

The same poll worker reviewed the touch screen, he said, and told him his vote had gone through and would be counted.

Merced County Registrar Stephen Jones said elections workers looked into the matter for 10 hours on Thursday, but found nothing wrong.

Jones said the ballots were counted twice, but there's nothing else his office can do unless someone officially files for a recount.

Voters have 10 days after the election was certified ? at 12:30 p.m. Wednesday ? to file for a recount. They also would have to pay for the recount, which would be about $200, Jones said.

Other than that, he said, "The election is over. It cannot be reopened."

The anonymous voter said that when he read in the paper that one ballot wasn't marked, he figured the coincidence was too great.

"I knew that was my vote and just couldn't keep my mouth shut," he said. "Mr. Jones doesn't want to prove to me that wasn't my vote."

Jones said there were no reports of voters having difficulties with electronic voting machines. He said it would be impossible to submit an invalid vote without knowing it.

If the voter had submitted the ballot without marking yes or no, Jones said, a message would have appeared on the screen warning the voter that no choice had been made, and asking the voter to press a button to continue.