Update: Per Assistant Town Clerk Kim Spezzano on Tuesday, the finally vote tally for Board of Education, which had been close between two of the three endorsed Republican candidates or two spots, Cody Kittle and Megan Galletta, was for 13 votes in favor of Mr. Kittle.
“As with every election, the Town Clerk’s Office reviews all numbers from tapes and Moderator returns,” Spezzano said, adding, “The reason for this is that the Town Clerk’s Office certifies the winners of every election. There were data entry errors in the Connecticut’s Election Management System. They have been corrected.”
Last Friday Ms Spezzano announced on Friday to all those present that the timing was short and the process would not be complete until Monday. (GFP was not present the entire day).
Later on Tuesday Megan Galletta did not respond to a request for comment.
The new board will be sworn in during the next business meeting on Nov 17, at which point they will elect new officers, including Chair, Vice Chair and Secretary.
Asked if Ms Galletta should concede the race, Mr. Kittle said on Tuesday, “I feel for her. It was a painfully close race. I don’t take any of this personally. She can take as much time as she needs. My focus is the BOE work.”
Original story, Friday, Nov 5, 2021 The recount for the Board of Education election is finally complete after two days. On Friday around 3pm, the Registrar of Voters announced the results, which have Republican Cody Kittle defeating Megan Galletta by just one vote.
The recount process was open to the public. On both Thursday and Friday the observers outnumbered counters and moderators.
Here are the final results (bold) from Nov 5 compared to the results from earlier in the week (itallics).
Kathleen Stowe (D) 8364 – was 8,328
Laura Kostin (D) 8095 – was 8,065
Cody Kittle (R) 8357 – was 8,336
Megan Galletta (R) 8356 – was 8,300
Michael Joseph Mercanti-Anthony (R) 9306 – was 9,276
Write in candidate Kara Philbin 1883 (independent) was 1,493
Republican Registrar of Voters Fred DeCaro said for everyone who was present when the numbers were submitted to the State System and received the initial report back, the issue with the numbers after the initial submission was found to be a problem with the Secretary of State’s System.
“There were no changes or adjustments to the tallies after observers left,” DeCaro Said. “We have contacted the state and they fixed their system.”
Mr. Kittle shared a response by email on Friday afternoon.
“I want to thank Sharon Vecchiola and all the recount workers for their thorough review the last two days under difficult circumstances,” he said. “I am glad the election is finally over and I am very excited to join the Board of Education. The real win will be when our new BOE can meaningfully improve our schools for all kids. I hope everyone remembers this election when they ponder if their vote actually matters.”
An email requesting comment from Ms Galletta Friday afternoon was not returned.
See also:
UPDATE: Recount for Greenwich Board of Education Race Announced
Clean Sweep for Republicans in Greenwich Municipal Elections
