Summers official winner of New Bern mayoral election, runoff requested for Ward 1 and 2
The Craven County Board of Elections completed canvassing votes from the May 17 primary and municipal election and the results are final — former New Bern police chief Toussaint Summers has won the city's mayoral race.
Before canvassing began, which is the process of accounting for every ballot cast and ensuring every valid vote cast is included in the election totals, Summers held a one-vote lead against Ward 6 Alderman Jeffrey Odham.
With the vote tallies now official, Summers' lead against Odham grew slightly, finishing the race with a 4-vote margin of victory.
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New Bern's final vote tallies have Summers finishing the election with 2,635 votes, while Odham received 2,631. New Bern residents Tim Harris and Maxwell Oglesby finished third and fourth respectively, with Harris bringing in 304 votes and Oglesby tallying 126.
The canvass also finalized the results for the remaining New Bern aldermen races. In Ward 1, incumbent Alderman Sabrina Bengel received 548 votes and beat New Bern resident Rick Prill who received 507 votes. Former Ward 5 Alderman Bernard White finished third with 217 votes.
In Ward 2, Alderwoman Jameesha Harris' service on the board will officially end after coming in third place against Jennell Reddick and Hazel Royal. Reddick finished first in the race with 268 votes while Royal finished second with 240 votes.
More: Leading by one vote: Summers holds slim lead as results remain unofficial
More: New Bern Aldermen: Bengel leads in Ward 1, Reddick takes down Harris, Brinson wins
More: Several New Bern candidates celebrate Tuesday night lead but races are far from over
Ward 6 candidate Bob Brinson was the only candidate to win a city contested race outright on election night. Brinson beat Travis Oakley by 304 votes and received 60.8% of the vote.
Ward 3 Alderman Bobby Aster, Ward 4 Alderman Johnnie Ray Kinsey, and Ward 5 Alderman Barbara Best also won their respective races outright. Neither of the three incumbents ran contested.
So what happens next?
With the results becoming official, three of New Bern's municipal races did not see a winner receive 50% of the vote. This leaves a door open for the second-place candidates to request a runoff.
On Friday, Prill and Royal officially requested runoff elections for Ward 1 and Ward 2 which will be held on July 26, according to the board of elections. As of Friday morning, Odham has not requested a runoff with Summers but has until June 2 to do so.
Friday afternoon, Odham explained he will make an official announcement on his decision to request a runoff on Tes
Before requesting a runoff, candidates also have the option of requesting a recount. A recount would have to be requested in writing and received by the county board of elections by 5 p.m. on the first business day after the canvass.
Monday is the first business day after the canvass.
Under North Carolina law, a candidate has the right to demand a recount if the difference between the votes for that candidate and the votes for a prevailing candidate is not more than 1% of the total votes cast on the ballot.
Odham is well within the realm of requesting a recount.
Reporter Trevor Dunnell can be reached by email at tdunnell@newbernsj.com. Please consider supporting local journalism by signing up for a digital subscription.
This article originally appeared on Sun Journal: New Bern mayor: Summers' win becomes official. Ward 1 and 2 runoff
