Extra: Election

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Election recounts continue; East Greenwich Town Council race decided

08:04 AM EST on Tuesday, November 18, 2008

By JOHN HILL and LISA VERNON-SPARKS

Journal Staff Writers

PROVIDENCE — Two weeks after Election Day, one contest has finally ended in East Greenwich, but the race goes on for two Tiverton town treasurer hopefuls and two Burrillville School Committee candidates.

In all races, the results aren’t officially final until accepted by the state Board of Elections. But after yesterday’s still-unofficial recounts at the board’s offices, Richard P. Buonauito’s 4,083 recounted votes gave him a 31-vote victory over Steven W. Gregson, who had 4,052 in the East Greenwich Town Council race. With 29 ballots still to be reviewed, Gregson mathematically can’t win.

In the Tiverton and Burrillville contests, the winners’ margins of victory were still within the number of ballots still under review.

In the Burrillville School Committee race, Debra L. Stockwell had 2,011 votes and Peter F. Lambert 1,990. With 33 ballots under review, Stockwell’s 21-vote lead was not decisive.

The Tiverton treasurer’s race was similar. The manual recount showed Philip A. DiMattia with 2,109 votes and Laura L. Epke with 2,058. DiMattia’s 51-vote lead was less than the 150 ballots still to be reviewed.

The Board of Elections’ executive director, Robert Kando, said the remaining ballots are ones in which a voter may have either voted for no one or for too many people in a given race. Those ballots will be examined by the board at one of its three meetings set for next week to determine if the voter’s preference in the affected races can be discerned, and the final results will be declared.

In other races, rereading of the machines’ memory packs showed no changes for Jean Philippe Barro’s defeat of Mary Bray in the Pawtucket City Council District 5 election, David Hanna’s election to the Scituate Town Council over Richard J. Kells and Maryanne H. Roll’s at-large Lincoln School Committee win over Deborah A. Ambeault.

lsparks@projo.com

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