MARQUETTE, Mich. (WZMQ) – The recount of the May 5th election, regarding the Marquette Area Public Schools’ 60 million dollar bond proposal, is complete.
No irregularities were found, and the measure has officially passed.
The Marquette County Board of Canvassers met today to perform the recount of the May 5th ballot in four precincts. In a hand count of the ballots, every vote matched the results reported on election day. The recount changes nothing.
“They completed it within about two hours, which is pretty good. It was all hand-counted, and the integrity of the election was upheld, so all the numbers of all the machines matched,” said Marquette Township Clerk Randy Ritari.
The reason for the recount: private citizen Margaret Brumm, who called for the recount because of something she saw on Facebook. She questioned the results after seeing a post from an independent local media outlet that incorrectly reported the measure had failed.
“Those are not official results. They’re not unofficial results. They are something you saw on Facebook, and I don’t want to talk too badly about Facebook, but it’s not necessarily the truth. If you’ve seen it there,” explained Marquette City Clerk Kyle Whitney.
In Michigan, anyone can call for a recount of an election, provided they pay a deposit to cover the costs. Brumm shelled out $2,000 to mount the challenge. That said, it’s possible the taxpayers could be saddled with some of the expense.
“There is a possibility that, you know, if the time or the effort of the work outstripped that deposit, it would, yeah, it would be taxpayer money at some point,” said Whitney.
Officials say today’s recount reinforced the integrity of the election process in Marquette County.
“Everything is matched, and the process should move forward for Marquette Area Public Schools for their bond proposal,” said Ritari.
According to MAPS Superintendent Zach Sedgwick, the recount has disrupted the district’s financing schedule and may affect how the district levies taxes for the voter-approved bond.
