Absentee Ballots

The nearly 1,600 absentee ballots cast in Washington County did not change the outcome of any races, according to the Washington County Election Board. The board counted the 1,576 absentee votes Thursday. The results will become official on Nov. 15 after overseas ballots are tallied. The absentee ballots raised the voter turnout percentage to 55.5 percent, up from the 53.3 percent who showed up at the polls Tuesday. Of the county's 70,090 registered voters, 38,903 casts votes, according to the election board.

The count of more than 2,700 absentee ballots from Tuesday's election began Thursday morning and is expected to be completed Friday, Washington County Election Director Kaye Robucci said. The only race that might be affected by the count is for the fifth seat on the Hagerstown City Council where Martin Brubaker had 5,262 votes - 188 more than William Breichner, according to unofficial results. About 600 absentee ballots from city residents were returned to the Board of Elections.

tarar@herald-mail.com The number of Hancock voters who requested absentee ballots for this month's election has nearly tripled since the last town election, causing concern with Election Board Chairman Lowell Younker. Younker said 76 people, or about 20 percent, have asked for absentee ballots for the Jan. 27 election. That's up from the 28 people who voted by absentee ballot in the January 2001 election. As of Oct. 25, there were 1,018 Hancock residents registered to vote.

WASHINGTON COUNTY -- Washington County voters who want to apply by mail or fax for absentee ballots for the Feb. 12 primary election must do so by Tuesday, Feb. 5. The county board of elections must receive mailed applications by 4:30 p.m. on Feb. 5; faxed applications must arrive by 11:59 p.m. After Feb. 5, application requests must be made in person at the board of elections at 35 W. Washington St., Room 101, in Hagerstown. Applications can be downloaded from the Maryland Board of Elections' Web site at www.elections.

HAGERSTOWN - Washington and Frederick counties expect to be counting at least twice as many absentee ballots as usual in the coming election, fitting in with a statewide trend. Absentee voting gained momentum this year for two reasons, county election officials say. A new "no fault" law relaxes the criteria, meaning absentee voting is no longer limited to people with obstacles such as being out of town or being physically unable to get to a polling place. Also, because of concern about potential electronic voting machine problems, elected officials such as Republican Gov. Robert Ehrlich and Montgomery County Executive Douglas Duncan, a Democrat, are encouraging absentee voting, according to The Associated Press.

CHAMBERSBURG, Pa. -The deadline to apply for absentee ballots for the May 20 Franklin County municipal primary is 5 p.m. Tuesday, May 13. Voters may apply in person at the courthouse or request an application for an absentee ballot. They may also request an absentee ballot by letter, which must include name, residence address, birth date, reason for requesting an absentee ballot, address to where it should be mailed and the voter's signature. Requests may be mailed to the County Board of Elections, Franklin County Courthouse, 157 Lincoln Way East, Chambersburg, PA 17201, or they may be faxed to the courthouse at 717-267-3438.

laurae@herald-mail.com LeRoy E. Myers Jr. declared victory Thursday after absentee ballots confirmed his upset of Maryland House Speaker Casper R. Taylor Jr. in Tuesday's election. But with Myers' margin of victory shrinking by half - to 71 votes - Taylor could still decide to ask for a recount. Taylor did not attend the ballot counts in Allegany and Washington counties. Myers camped out at the Allegany County Election Office all day, watching election officials complete the painstakingly slow process of opening and examining more than 1,000 absentee ballots.

Hagerstown Councilman Martin E. Brubaker has essentially wrapped up a re-election win, based on absentee and provisional ballots counted so far. The Washington County Board of Elections on Wednesday tallied provisional ballots, which voters cast at the polls if there is a question about their registration status. At the end of Election Day, which was Nov. 6, Brubaker led Councilman William M. Breichner by 188 votes in the race for the fifth and final council seat. As of Wednesday, Brubaker's lead was 178 votes.

The count of more than 2,700 absentee ballots from Tuesday's election began Thursday morning and is expected to be completed Friday, Washington County Election Director Kaye Robucci said. The only race that might be affected by the count is for the fifth seat on the Hagerstown City Council where Martin Brubaker had 5,262 votes - 188 more than William Breichner, according to unofficial results. About 600 absentee ballots from city residents were returned to the Board of Elections.

Political newcomer and local attorney Travis Poole said Wednesday he was a “little disappointed” that he didn't win a seat on the Washington County Board of Education, but he hasn't ruled out running again. The three incumbents and political newcomer Melissa Williams appeared to secure their positions as the top four vote-getters for the four school board seats that were up for grabs in Tuesday's general election. The board has seven members. Even with 3,340 absentee ballots issued and more than 1,000 provisional ballots to be canvassed, it is highly unlikely Poole will get enough votes to make up the difference, taking into account early voting and all 54 precincts.

Political newcomer Melissa Williams and the three Washington County Board of Education incumbents running for re-election were leading the race for four seats on the school board, according to unofficial results from early voting and with 54 of 54 precincts reporting Tuesday night. With five candidates vying for four seats on the seven-member school board, only one candidate will be left without a seat. Incumbent Justin Hartings and political newcomer and local attorney Travis Poole were the two candidates with the least amount of votes as of presstime.

Two former Hagerstown City Council members appear to be headed back to City Hall, according to complete but unofficial election results Tuesday night. With 18 of 18 precincts reporting and early voting results, Democratic challengers Kristin B. Aleshire and Penny Nigh held the top two positions overall, earning 8,010 votes and 6,477 votes, respectively. In third, longtime state legislator Don Munson, who looks to be the council's lone Republican, had collected 6,185 votes, followed by incumbent Democrat Lewis C. Metzner with 6,016 votes.

The unofficial numbers from early voting and Tuesday's polling showed 59,238 of the 87,294 people registered cast ballots. That is approximately 68 percent of registered voters, according to Board of Election records. However, that number does not include the 3,371 absentee ballots issued before the election. By Wednesday afternoon, 2,725 of those had been received and logged, but more came in Wednesday's mail and more will arrive over the next several days, Election Supervisor Pamela Byrd said.

With canvassing of more than 600 city absentee ballots starting Thursday, the fifth and final seat on the Hagerstown City Council hangs in the balance between two incumbent councilmen. Both Democrats, Martin Brubaker led William Breichner by an 188-vote margin Tuesday night with all 18 Election Day precincts and early voting results tabulated, leaving a chance that Breichner could amass enough votes to potentially reach Brubaker. A total of 730 absentee ballots were issued to city voters and 601 had been returned as of Wednesday, according to Washington Co. Elections Board Director Kaye Robucci.

Democratic challenger David S. Gysberts held a sizable lead over incumbent Republican Robert E. Bruchey II in the race for mayor of Hagerstown, according to complete but unofficial election results Tuesday night. With 18 of 18 precincts reporting and early voting results, Gysberts had collected 7,237 votes to Bruchey's total of 5,127. “The people have spoken,” Gysberts, who lost his first mayoral bid to Bruchey by more than 500 votes, said at 10:15 p.m.. “With good luck, things will continue to go well and we'll have some change here in Hagerstown.” Bruchey was seeking his third elected term as mayor.

The Obama and Romney campaigns turned their attention to Pennsylvania and its 20 electoral votes this weekend as polls showed the president holding only a slight lead in the state coming into Tuesday's election. In Franklin County, Pa., registered Republican voters outnumber Democrats nearly 2-to-1. Still, county political watchers say turnout will be key when polls are open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Voter turnout was 72 percent in Franklin County in November 2008, according to published reports.