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AUGUSTA – Democrats were on the verge of laying claims to two more legislative seats Friday after two House recounts appeared to lean in the majority party’s direction.
House Democrats claimed late Friday afternoon that a recount in the House District 43 race had all but reversed the final outcome, putting incumbent Rep. Walter Ash, D-Belfast, ahead of Jayne Crosby Giles, R-Belfast. If certified, the reversal would give Democrats 77 seats in the House, leaving 72 Republicans, one Green Independent member and one independent.
After the election on Nov. 2, Crosby Giles was declared the winner, by 13 votes. But in a recount at the Maine State Crime Lab in Augusta on Friday, counters tallied Ash at eight votes more than his challenger, with Republicans challenging several ballots. The two sides will meet again on Monday to complete the results.
“Even though these are unofficial results, we are confident and looking forward to Walter Ash becoming the 77th member of our caucus,” said Assistant House Majority Leader Bob Duplessie in a prepared statement. “It will be good to have Representative Ash back where he should be – representing the people of his district and contributing to the work of the next Legislature. He is a fine legislator, and the people of Belfast, Northport and Belmont are lucky to have him.”
The second House recount of the day Friday left the election officials with an inconclusive result. In House District 42, where Democrat Joe Brooks is six votes behind incumbent Rep. Jeff Kaelin, both of Winterport, a review of the ballots is scheduled to continue into next week.
Kaelin led Brooks by four ballots Friday evening, but 18 ballots cast in the district had been challenged on voter registration grounds. If both candidates are unable to resolve the disputed ballots, the disagreement will move to the House, which according to the state constitution, is the determiner of its own members.
House Republican Leader Joe Bruno, R-Raymond, said late Friday evening that he believed there were enough challenged ballots in both House races to make the outcome uncertain for either party. Still, should majority Democrats in the House determine the outcome in each district, Bruno saw little reason for GOP optimism.
“They [the Democrats] will do anything they can to win,” he said.
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