County won’t release write-in count until election is certified
By Stephen Floyd, Ashland.news
Whether or not a write-in candidate has won a seat on the Ashland Parks and Recreation Commission (APRC) is unlikely to be known publicly until Jackson County certifies the results of the Nov. 8 election next month.
APRC Position 4 had no official candidate on the ballot, and as of the latest election update Nov. 25, a total of 2,404 write-in votes were received.
Jackson County Elections Program Manager Trisha Myers said results will not be made available until the election is certified, with a deadline of Dec. 5.
“We have no results to share at this time,” said Myers.
Two other APRC positions were filled during the Nov. 8 election: Position 3 by Jim Bachman and Position 5 by Rick Landt, both of whom were incumbents running unopposed.
Position 4 was left without a candidate after no complete candidate form was received by the the filing deadline of Aug. 12. Though Kerry KenCairn, the owner of Kencairn Landscape Architecture, submitted a form July 11, one of the voter signatures required for submission was invalidated and the form was considered incomplete.
KenCairn still campaigned as a write-in candidate and told Ashland.news that waiting for results until election certification makes sense, given the work involved in processing write-in votes.
“Write-in campaigns force hand counts and deciphering of hand-written information,” she said. “I think that providing the result as part of the larger certification makes sense from an efficiency standpoint and I am sorry for whomever has to perform the task of counting these votes.”
KenCairn said she did not run on a specific platform, but instead saw in APRC an opportunity to utilize her background and skill sets in landscape architecture to contribute to her community. She has already played a role in local government since 1996 as part of various city committees and commissioners.
“I have worked with the parks commission on designing of parks as well as assisted in other projects,” she said.
KenCairn specifically helped with the Lithia Park Master Plan, a project she hopes to finalize whether she is elected or not. KenCairn said, if she gains a seat on the board, she assumes she will no longer be able to work as a paid consultant on APRC projects, but instead will offer her perspective without pay and assist both the board and those hired to complete commission projects.
Email Ashland.news reporter Stephen Floyd at sfloydmedia@gmail.com.
