UPDATE: Kinnickinnic election recount confirms Van Beek as the winner

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It took about 3 1/2 hours for Kinnickinnic's town clerk and canvassers to reaffirm that incumbent Roger Van Beek won the Town Chairman April 5 election. The recount, requested by his opponent, Gordon Awsumb, was conducted at Kinnickinnic Town Hall Monday morning, April 11.

Awsumb lost by only 14 votes on Tuesday, April 5, 323-309.

Town Clerk Lola Higgins said Monday's recount turned up the same numbers, with Van Beek winning 323-309.

During the April 5 election, one of the town's touch-screen monitors went blank and wasn't used again.

A replacement voting machine from the village of Deer Park was brought in to extract totals from the one that stopped working.

Monday, a hand recount was done on the touch-screen machine that broke down. The totals were unchanged, with Van Beek ahead of Awsumb by one vote on that particular machine.

Other than machine breakdown, Higgins said the April 5 election day voting was normal.

Awsumb campaigned vigorously against Van Beek, criticizing him for backing a 46.7% tax increase to fund future road maintenance.

Town voters overwhelmingly rejected that large tax hike at a town-wide meeting last November.

Higgins said Monday's recount reaffirms that Van Beek is officially re-elected as Town Board chairman.

Awsumb could conceivably dispute the outcome in court.

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