Circuit Judge René Williams has ruled that the election recount petitioned for by Webster County attorney Ben Leonard in the race for 5th Circuit family court judge in Crittenden, Webster and Union counties will begin Monday in Crittenden County.
The three-county race for family court judge was decided by only 50 votes on Election Day, with Marion attorney Brandi Hagan Rogers coming out on top with 6,193 votes to Leonard's 6,143. On Friday, Leonard filed a petition with Crittenden Circuit Clerk Melissa Guill's office for a recount in the hope of a different outcome from the Nov. 4 vote.
Besides scheduling the recount to start next week, Judge Williams ordered this evening that ballots be tabulated by digital voting machines and not by hand as Leonard had requested. Leonard was also ordered to post a $5,000 cash bond to cover any expenses associated with the recount.
The recount will begin at 7:30 a.m. Monday at Crittenden County Courthouse when Judge Williams, local election officials and the parties involved in the case will be on hand to begin the process, which is expected to take all day. At least one technician with Lexington-based Harp Enterprises, the distributor of the election machines who sets them up for all three counties, will also be on hand to handle the technical aspects involved with the machines used in the recount.
The recount will move to Webster County on Tuesday and Union County on Wednesday, with each beginning at the same time and under the same procedure as in Crittenden County.
The process is expected to take all day in each county. In fact, once the recount begins, it will continue that day until all precincts in the respective counties are retabulated, no matter the hour.
The recount will take place in the courtroom in each county's courthouse and is open to the public.
After Judge Williams' ruling, one of Leonard's attorney's, Amealia R. Zachary of Dixon, said she was satisfied with the outcome.
"We would have preferred a hand count, but we are pleased with the ruling," she said.
Though frustrated with the request for a recount, Rogers, too, expressed her contentment with the assigned process by Judge Williams. She anticipates the same outcome from the recount.
"I have faith in the election process, the machines and the people involved," she said.
