A hometown newspaper with a local office, local owners & lots of local news
A hometown newspaper with a local office, local owners & lots of local news
Makenzie Korby and Kevin DeVriendt counted votes on primary night, Aug. 11. The pair work in the accounting department in the auditor/treasurer's office, and help out during elections. After adding up ballots that arrived by mail after Tuesday, the results remained the same in the county.
An additional 82 mailed ballots were delivered to the Carlton County Courthouse in the two days following Tuesday's primary, but even with the additional votes counted, the rankings in the local election remain unchanged.
Moving on to the general election in November for Cloquet City Council Ward 5 are Lyz Jaakola and Dennis M. Painter, while former mayor Dave Hallback is out of the race with a third-place finish. Final results showed Jaakola with 217 votes (up from 210 after Tuesday), Painter with 119 (up from 117) and Hallback with 105 (up from 103). There was no incumbent in the Ward 5 race, as Steve Langley didn't run again.
Incumbent Gary Peterson and challenger Alex French will face off in the District 5 Carlton County Commissioners race in November. Peterson received 593 votes total (up from 570 after Tuesday), French had 358 (up from 316) and third-place finisher Marci Moreland had a final tally of 213 votes (up from 207 after Tuesday).
This was the first time the state has allowed votes arriving after election day to be counted. Because of litigation brought by citizen groups, Minnesota voters got two extra days to get their ballots in, provided they were postmarked by the primary election day. That meant votes that arrived via mail only by the end of the day Thursday were counted. Voters could not hand-deliver votes after election day.
An additional 18 ballots came in after Thursday (seven on Friday and 11 on Monday) and were not counted, Carlton County acting auditor/treasurer Kathy Kortuem said.
Kortuem said she was pleased with last Tuesday's election and her office's performance.
"A heavy emphasis on cross-training for staff, some changes in processes, and the extended time allowed for processing ballots really helped make for a smooth day despite the challenges," she said. "While the general will almost certainly have a high turnout and issues popping up, the changes made for the primary were done with serious consideration of how they would help in the general election."
For the general election in November, ballots can arrive up to seven days after Election Day and still be counted in Minnesota.
Kortuem is cautiously optimistic about the November election.
"In a way, the primary was a dress rehearsal for the new circumstances we expect to deal with in November. The state, all counties, and lots of professional organizations are all sharing ideas and best practices for everyone to learn from as well. That's been really helpful, too."
