Salmon leads in auditor recount
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By Louis Porter Vermont Press Bureau - Published: December 15, 2006
MONTPELIER — Challenger Tom Salmon is leading in an as-yet incomplete recount of votes in the race for state auditor of accounts, but state officials and the two candidates who still are vying for the post said Thursday the result remains undecided.
An informal Associated Press tally of the 13 counties that have completed their recounts showed Salmon in the lead by 2,404 votes. In the regular election, incumbent Auditor Randy Brock won Chittenden County by a 2,202-vote margin, so if those results do not change during the ongoing recount, Brock would be about 202 votes shy of retaining his seat.
Many of the votes that have changed during the recount have been in towns with paper ballots — of which there are relatively few in Chittenden County.
But Brock, Salmon and Secretary of State Deborah Markowitz warned Thursday against concluding that Salmon will win the post at this point based on incomplete results and unofficial tallies. That is because both candidates have gained and lost votes in different parts of the state for different reasons, and the same could hap-pen in Chittenden County.
"There are tens of thousands of votes still to be counted," Markowitz said. "Other things could happen … there are always a couple of votes here and there."
Although relatively few votes have changed in towns that use optical scanning machines to count ballots, but there always are a few votes that the human eye can register in a recount but which the machines missed, she said.
Salmon initially conceded the election based on an unofficial tally, but asked for a recount when it became clear the actual difference in the number of his votes and those cast for Brock were much smaller.
That is a lesson Brock drew on Thursday when he said he would wait for the final results before saying much about the recount. "I think we have seen in this race how unwise it is to make decisions on the basis of unofficial results," he said.
"I would certainly be much happier if the numbers were more in my direction at this point," Brock said. "There are votes that are coming out in both directions," he said.
Salmon also is waiting on the final numbers. "I am trying not to read into it at all right now, I am trying to wait for the final results like a good accountant," Salmon said.
Results from Chittenden County are expected by early next week. Then a judge must certify the results before the recount is decided.
There are various options for contesting a recount, but Brock said it is too early to start thinking about such measures.
"There are a variety of provisions," he said. "It's premature to even talk about anything like that."
Whatever the results, Markowitz's office likely will look at what happened in a small group of towns with relatively large populations and paper ballots. In those municipalities, where hand-counting of ballots went late into the night, some votes which should have gone to Salmon were apparently added to Liberty Union Party candidate Jerry Levy's tally.
Markowitz said her office will look at whether "those towns should be thinking about going to optical scan machines," she said.
The recount "is a great, great opportunity," to review if there are some problems in the voting system, she said. "By and large, it works pretty well."
Brock agreed the inquiry should be done, after the results are final.
"As you look at any process in detail there are usually lessons you can learn about how you can improve that process in the future," he said. "I would suspect there would be a number of those lessons here."
Salmon, who quit his job with the state government to run for office, said that he has been doing some accounting work and some property management work during the campaign and since. He has also been in the process of starting his own accounting business, he said.
"I would be on the road to a debate, and I would get a call from a tenant who has had their stove go out," he said. "It is great training for politics."
Contact Louis Porter at louis.porter@timesargus.com.
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