LINCOLN — Republican state Rep. William J. McManus’11-vote victory over Democrat Ronald A. Loparto isn’t certain yet, as today state election officials will be counting 16 provisional ballots that were not counted in the Tuesday election.

The unofficial count from election night had McManus winning, 2,811 to 2,800, after machine and mail-in ballots were counted.

Provisional ballots are cast when there is some question about a voter’s eligibility, such as where he or she lives. The voter is allowed to fill out a ballot, but it is not counted until election officials can determine whether the person is legally allowed to vote.

The 46th House District covers eastern Lincoln, bordered on the north by Route 116 and on the west by Route 146. It also includes a part of the Fairlawn section of Pawtucket.

In Lincoln, 11 provisional ballots from the part of town in McManus’ 46th House District have been determined to be countable.

Pawtucket canvassers said five of seven provisional ballots from the part of their city in the 46th District qualified to be counted.

Provisional ballots are sent to the Board of Elections office in Providence. The board has announced it will start counting all the provisional ballots it has received at 10 a.m. today. The process is expected to finish by the end of the day.

Loparto, a member of the Lincoln Town Council, beat McManus in the Pawtucket part of the district by 318 votes. McManus topped Loparto by 278 in the Lincoln voting machine count. The two-term incumbent needed a 51-vote margin in Lincoln mail-in ballots to overcome Loparto’s Pawtucket margin and take that 11-vote lead.