Louie Wright seeks recount in close KC council primary election

Retired firefighter Louie Wright, who finished third in the 1st District primary council race on April 7, is seeking a recount.

The 1st District race featured four candidates. Challenger Heather Hall won with 1,380 votes, followed by incumbent Dick Davis with 1,267. The top two-vote getters are supposed to advance to the June 23 general election.

But Wright was just 32 votes behind Davis in the official count, with 1,235 votes. Jane Rinehart was last with 551 votes.

Wright said his supporters urged him to pursue a recount and a possible challenge to the election results. Due to the close vote, he is entitled to seek a recount, and he has filed a petition with that request. He also is preserving the right to challenge the election result based on an alleged irregularity.

Wright said that at least one voting place lacked ballots listing the 1st District in-district candidates for approximately the first two hours that the polls were open, and it’s possible that affected the outcome. State law provides for a new election if it is determined that irregularities were of sufficient magnitude to cast doubt on the election result.

This story was originally published April 15, 2015 at 1:18 PM with the headline "Louie Wright seeks recount in close KC council primary election."