Staff Report

It has been a lively election season in Andes this year.

By the time you read this the certified results will have been printed on the Delaware County Board of Elections (BOE) website (go to “http://www.co.delaware.ny.us and click on Board of Elections on the right, then click on the left panel on Election Night Reporting.) The towns are listed in alphabetical order, with Andes, naturally, appearing at the top. Martin Donnelly won, unopposed, for Town Supervisor. Wayland “Bud” Gladstone and Tom Hall won spots on the Town Council, Kimberly Tosi was elected as Town Clerk, Margaret Moshier as Tax Collector and Mike McAdams as Highway Superintendent.

Some of the candidates ran on two lines. Kimberly Tosi won the Republican primary against incumbent Janis Lynn Jacques and was also endorsed by the Andes Democratic Committee. Therefore, you saw her name on both lines on the ballot.

All four of the candidates for town council circulated an independent petition as well as the party petition, for which they had to choose a party name and symbol. The primary election took place on September 13th. If someone had filed just a party petition and lost, and didn’t circulate an independent petition, they could not appear on the ballot. In at least one town a candidate who lost the primary waged a write-in campaign. He accrued many votes but didn’t win. It’s an uphill battle to win as a write-in.

The reason the results are listed as unofficial for at least 10 days after the election is that write-ins, affidavit ballots and absentee ballots have to be evaluated and counted. As we go to press the results are not yet posted on line (the last day for the BOE to receive absentee ballots was November 15th, Military ballots, November 21st.)

Some voter advice: Do not write-in the name of a candidate already appearing on the ballot. If you do, it will be invalid. Some voters neglect to read the legend where it says, Vote for 1 or Vote for 2, and either over or under vote.

What is an affidavit ballot? If you arrive at the polls and find out that your name is not on the voter roll, but believe you are entitled to vote in that district, you can vote by affidavit ballot, as well as fill out a registration if you need to register a name or address change. These ballots are evaluated by the commissioners who determine which will count. Sometimes the post office has returned a mail check card in error or someone has changed their P.O. box or address within a district and not reported it to the BOE. In these cases, their vote can count. However, if you have moved out of your district and don’t go to the correct district polling place to vote, or if your registration has been purged for any number of reasons you will be notified that your affidavit ballot vote did not count.

In conclusion, remember to notify the BOE any time you move within the county. You can get a form at the DMV, from your town clerk’s office, your post office, or download a form from the BOE website. The website has a very informative FAQ section. If you haven’t quenched your curiosity after clicking on the topics there, don’t hesitate to call the Board at 607-746-2315, Monday through Friday, 8:30-4 p.m. for information or clarification on election rules and procedures.~