BREAKING NEWS: The November elections were more than 3 weeks ago, but the outcome of a $96 million capital levy vote for South Washington County Schools came down to a 2 hour long, 5 person committee manual examination of 19 contested ballots discovered after a hand recount late last week. The result of the recount Wednesday Morning is confirmation of passage of the levy by a margin of 5 votes. The results were 6,840 yes votes and 6,835 no votes. The meeting video and supporting documents are available on the district website.
The levy vote at the first count, passed by the narrowest of margins, reflecting 18 ballots that had disparities from the standard marking criteria. The close contest resulted in a recount of the bond question requested by Cottage Grove resident Bev Moreland, who submitted the required documentation and number of signatures required to conduct a recount. In the examination, another 19 incorrectly marked ballots fell under scrutiny by the canvassing board who decided whether or not those were valid. The machines used to tally votes have certain criteria that is necessary to complete their job, and one of the most important, is to discern whether a circle has been filled in, signifying a vote. The funding will support the construction of a new Oltman Middle School, renovate the existing Oltman to become Nuevas Fronteras Spanish Immersion, and provide for facility growth needs at each of the districts other three middle schools Cottage Grove, Lake and Woodbury.In a statement released by Superintendent Keith Jacobus, he said We appreciate the request for verification of such a close margin of approval for this bond question, and are pleased that this process verified the passage of the bond referendum, he would like to again thank our community for its continued support of the 833 district and students.
