Nov 11, 2023 By Mike Jones staff Writer mjones@observer-Reporter.Com 5 min read

Out of the nearly 1,500 mail-in ballots counted in Greene County following Tuesday’s election, more than one-third of them had “overvotes” in the commissioners race, although the amount of them appears to be too low to affect the final results.

The elections office on Thursday night completed counting 1,484 mail-in ballots and found there were 548 in which people voted for three candidates in the commissioners race after the county sent out ballots that erroneously told voters to select three choices instead of two.

Republican candidates Jared Edgreen and Betsy Rohanna McClure were the top two vote-getters in the election, receiving 4,551 and 4,365 tallies respectively, followed by Democrat Blair Zimmerman, who received 3,458 votes. Those three will fill out the three-person board of commissioners when it’s seated in early January. The other candidate running in the election, Democrat Christine “Chris” Bailey, came in last place with 2,453 votes.

Even with the large number of “overvotes” in the race – which weren’t counted in the commissioners race – there still wouldn’t be enough votes to make a difference with the gap between Bailey and the other three candidates. Greene County Commission Chairman Mike Belding, who also leads the elections board, said they expect to certify the election next week barring any challenges.

“If you do the statistics on the commissioners race, the last vote-gaining candidate cannot reach the threshold to change the (election),” Belding said.

County officials attempted to inform voters who used mail-in ballots about the situation after the error was detected Oct. 28, which was too late to send out new versions. It was the second mistake on the mail-in ballots after the county had to recall the original batch that included both magistrate races for all voters.

The county’s elections office held later hours on weekdays and was open over the weekend ahead of Tuesday in order to give voters a chance to “cure” their ballots, and while many did, it appears that a substantial number of them did not. Officials also urged people who were concerned about mistakes on their mail-in ballots to vote provisionally at their precinct, which 89 of them did.

Bailey doesn’t plan to challenge the election results because she’s too far behind to catch up, but she said it’s “infuriating” the number of errors in the run-up to the election that penalized people who voted by mail.

“At what point do we say, ‘This is OK?’ and be complacent. Or say no, this is not acceptable, ‘What can we do better?’ That’s my question,” Bailey said. “If we can’t handle a local election, what is going to happen next year with a presidential election?”

Zimmerman, who has been a commissioner since 2012 and will now serve another term in office, said he was disturbed by how the situation unfolded as he monitored the race as a candidate since he was not a member of the elections board this year.

“(The ballot) just wasn’t looked at close enough. It definitely opened my eyes,” Zimmerman said. “We can’t let this happen again.”

While the elections board is responsible for reviewing and approving the ballots, Zimmerman placed the blame for this situation on former elections director Jason Mihal, who took the position in January and left for a job elsewhere in mid-October just as the mistakes were being discovered.

“I believe he absolutely dropped the ball,” Zimmerman said.

Mihal was replaced on Oct. 23 by Eric Finch, who has a political science background and appears to have settled into his new job nicely despite getting thrown into the role just before this election. Finch is the fifth person to hold the position of elections director in Greene County since longtime director Tina Kiger was inexplicably demoted in August 2020.

Both Edgreen and Rohanna McClure said they look forward to working together with Zimmerman on the new board. However, neither responded to questions about the mail-in ballot problems in Greene County.

“I would like to sincerely thank all those that supported me in my reelection,” Rohanna McClure said in a text message. “I will continue to work tirelessly for all Greene County residents and employers. The last four years have been challenging and educational, however the stage is set for economic growth. I feel very positive with the opportunity to work with Commissioner Edgreen and Zimmerman.”

“??I am truly humbled to be chosen by the people of Greene County to represent them as the next county commissioner,” Edgreen said in a written statement. ” I will strive to serve all residents with a community oriented approach as together we move Greene County in a positive direction. There will be much to learn, but with the help of our seasoned commissioners , McClure and Zimmerman, I have no doubt we will accomplish what is needed for this county.”

Meanwhile, Bailey said she plans to run for office again in the future, but until then she wants the county government to get its house in order to ensure there are competent people in leadership positions.

“The county is in constant flux. How can you hold anyone accountable?” she said. “I’m happy with how I did. I’m not bitter. … but it leads me to question exactly how this is going to be pursued.”

*Jared Edgreen (R) – 4,551

*Betsy Rohanna McClure (R) – 4,365

*Blair Zimmerman (D) – 3,458

Christine “Chris” Bailey (D) – 2,453