A Salem Community High School board candidate who lost the election by three votes says she accepts defeat and will not contest the results.
With 80 late-arriving mail-in votes being added to the Marion County vote totals Tuesday afternoon, incumbent Michael McKinzie took the lead and appears to have won a fourth open seat on the school board 962 to 956 over Elisa Hourigan. The margin was cut to three votes with the three votes Hourigan received in Jefferson County where McKinzie garnered no votes.
On election night, the two were tied in Marion County results, but Hourigan was up three votes based on three residents in the small area of the Salem Community High School District in Jefferson County voting for her with no votes for McKinzie. In the late-arriving mail-in votes, McKinzie received 15 additional votes compared to the nine Hourigan received.
Hourigan is congratulating McKinzie on his re-election to the Salem Community High School Board. She called running for the board a learning experience.
While not having a seat on the board, Hourigan says she will still be in attendance at the meetings and will continue to seek a well-rounded education for everyone, including those not going to college. Hourigan also wants to find out why the cost of running the school is so high. She feels with everyone suffering from high taxes, the school board needs to relook at their expenditures to see if any can be reduced.
The results of one other close race did not change. In Kinmundy Ward 3, Tony Wimberly gained one vote, but still lost to incumbent Amy Davis 27 to 26.
Marion County Clerk Steve Fox says the vote canvas set for next Tuesday is still required before the vote totals are final.
