'That one vote can make the difference': Recount requested after single vote decision

Incumbent South Kent councillor Mary Clare Latimer in Chatham-Kent, Ont. on Tuesday, Oct. 25, 2022. (Chris Campbell/CTV News Windsor)

A recount request has been submitted in Chatham-Kent after a South Kent candidate lost her seat by one vote Monday night.

Incumbent Mary Clare Latimer made the request after the unofficial results favoured first-time Ward 2 candidate Ryan Doyle.

“Well, every vote counts,” Latimer said Tuesday morning.

“There are those who said, I just never thought it would go that way. And me too, but that's the way it is.” Latimer explained.

The municipality said due to some close results in this election, there have been some questions brought to attention about the potential for vote recounts, noting the Municipal Elections Act only provides for an automatic recount if there is a tie of two or more candidates.

Latimer suspected low voter turnout as the cause for her defeat.

Turnout across Chatham-Kent was 30.56 per cent with 24,546 ballots cast.

There were 34,722 ballots cast (45.44 per cent of eligible voters) during 2018, 32,783 ballots cast (42.1 per cent of eligible voters) during the 2014 election and 32,398 (39.9 per cent of eligible voters) during 2010.

“We'll have to wait and see,” Latimer exclaimed. “As I say that if the dear Lord wants me back on that council, that's what will happen and if not, he's got a different plan.”

Final unofficial results were compiled and published online within 60 minutes of polls closing Monday evening.

Official results were released Tuesday by Judy Smith, chief returning officer and Chatham-Kent director of municipal governance/clerk.

“I would like to thank the 350 election workers who did their jobs efficiently and who made it possible for us to provide timely and accurate information to the public,” Smith said in a media release.

Smith indicated that there were no tie votes in the 2022 Chatham-Kent Municipal Election, and as a result there is no automatic recount, noting additional election results and statistics, such as poll-by-poll, advance and online voting will be posted at www.ckelection.com/results as they are available.

“Typically we have low voter turnout for municipal races,” said political scientist Lydia Miljan. “I think in part it could just be that there's voter fatigue.”

“We had a federal election then a provincial election and now a municipal race and municipal races do require a lot more effort on the part of the voter because there are just so many more people who are vying for elected office and there’s more than one thing on the ballot and you don’t have sort of a short cut when it comes to political parties so you have to learn about every individual person running as opposed to having some information shortcuts like political parties.”

Miljan recalled a 2010 recount in Windsor that resulted in an incumbent councillor retaining their seat, suggesting that recounts have significance when necessary.

“It's the paradox of voting, right? Whenever you think why do you vote, your vote doesn't count, it's only one in hundreds or thousands,” she said. “But when you have these close races, that one vote can make the difference.”