Davis prevails in Wasco County DA election after hand count completed today, July 23
By Tom Peterson
The Dalles, Ore., July 23, 2024 — Results of the Wasco County District Attorney election were unchanged after a hand count was completed today, July 23, at the Wasco County Elections office as Kara Davis sealed her victory for the position.
“The Wasco County Clerk's Office concluded the demand recount of the District Attorney contest late this afternoon,” said Wasco County Elections Clerk Lisa Gambee in an email. “70 boxes totaling 6,795 ballots have been hand counted. There was no change in the results. Observers for both candidates were present for the process. Travis Marston requested a recount in his bid to become Wasco County District Attorney.”
During the original casting of ballots during the May Primary, Marston lost the tight race by 60 votes, according to the Certifed Official Results on June 12.
Kara Davis grabbed 3,166 votes to Marston’s 3,106.
The race was a nail-biter for arguably the most important position in law enforcement in Wasco County.
Two teams of two people hand count of the 6,795 ballots that were returned during the May 21 primary during the past few days.
In the counting process, team members both checked each ballot and placed it in one of several boxes - one labeled with Marston’s or Davis’ name, one marked undervote and one marked overvote.
The second team then double-checked the ballots in each box, ensuring that they were sorted correctly.
Observers from both candidates made sure no mistakes occurred.
Over Under?
An overvote occurs when a voter marks two or more candidate choices. An undervote occurs when the voter does not mark any choice for the candidate. In either case, those votes are not counted for any candidate.
“Each overvote and undervote ballot must be examined by the counting board to confirm that the voter did, in fact, cast an overvote or an undervote,” Zaugg said.
Counting Costs
Since the hand count did not flip the election results, Marston or his campaign is responsible for paying the costs for staffing the recount. The cost was estimated to be between $2,300 to $5,000, Wasco County Assistant Election Clerk Chrissy Zaugg said earlier this month.
