Butler County’s official Computational Election Returns Board will meet Friday to make decisions that could have a large impact on some local races.
According to Butler County Bureau of Elections Director Shari Brewer, the board will decide if the votes cast on 12 provisional ballots will be counted or not.
Provisional ballots are different from absentee ballots, which have already been counted and included with the most recent unofficial results. Provisional ballots are a fail-safe for voters who should be legally allowed to cast a vote but initially can’t due to errors or other bookkeeping circumstances.
These 12 ballots could impact the Democratic nominee for Butler County Court of Common Pleas, which currently has a margin of only six votes, or the race for Butler Area School Board with eight votes separating a candidate who will appear on the fall ballot from one who will not. Write-in votes will also be tabulated.
It is unknown how long the board will need to meet on Friday in order to make a decision about the ballots in question, but it is possible that results will not be made public until next week.
Pennsylvania’s Department of State will determine if a recount would be necessary.