A margin of just two votes between Port Moody council candidates David Stuart and Amy Lubik means ballots cast in Saturday’s civic election will be counted again.
Stuart, the city manager for the District of North Vancouver, edged incumbent Lubik, 3596-3594, in the unofficial results of Saturday’s vote to claim the sixth seat on council.
Port Moody’s chief election officer, Phillip Lo, said while a recount for such a small margin isn’t required under the city’s local government election bylaw or the provincial Local Government Act, it is the “right thing to do.”
He said another tally “supports our values of fairness and transparency, and our commitment to democracy.”
The recount will be conducted by Lo and designated city officials. Preliminary results from the city’s 10 vote tabulator machines will be reviewed to compare them with paperwork submitted by poll supervisors to ensure there are no irregularities or discrepancies.
Then, Lo will re-open all of the sealed ballot boxes, re-set the vote tabulation machines and feed all 8,989 ballots cast by Port Moody voters through them again to verify the preliminary results.
The recount process must be completed by Wednesday, when the Local Government Act requires election results to be declared official.
Even then, a judicial recount could be requested by a candidate, a candidate’s representative or an eligible elector, as well as a chief election officer, through an application to Provincial Court. The period for such an applications begins as soon as the results have been declared official and ends nine days after general voting has closed.
The preliminary results for Port Moody’s civic election are:
Mayor (one elected)
- Meghan Lahti 4,940
- Steve Milani 3,953
Councillor (six elected)
- Callan Morrison 4,742
- Diana Dilworth 4,100
- Samantha Agtarap 3,803
- Kyla Knowles 3,788
- Haven Lurbiecki 3,682
- David Stuart 3,596
- Amy Lubik 3,594
- Hunter Madsen 3,544
- Barbara Junker 3,426
- Dustin Chelen 3,322
- Richard Biedka 2,988
- Johann Contreras 2,808
- Dawn Slykhuis 939
- Eric Davis 720
School Trustee (two elected)
- Lisa Park 5,614
- Zoe Royer 4,400
- Nancy Johnston 3,179
- Ed Desaulniers 1,329
