Four races come down to absentee, write-in ballots

NORWICH – Although the polls closed at 9 p.m. Tuesday, at least four political races in Chenango County are too close to call, and according to election officials, winners in those races won’t be determined for a week.

At 10 a.m. on Nov. 14, the Chenango County Board of Elections will open and count a number of absentee and write-in ballots that will determine the winners of four separate races in Chenango County.

In the City of Norwich, the race between the Democratic incumbent James McNeil and his competitor Scott Sutton, who is running on the Square Deal ticket, was too close to call Tuesday night. At the end of the night, McNeil led the race with 435 votes to Sutton’s 393. Because there is only a 42 vote difference between the two candidates, no official results will be released until the remainder of the absentee ballots are counted. According to the Board of Elections, 96 absentee ballots had been sent out for the three wards.

Similarly, in the Town of Guilford the race for town council is currently undecided. Two positions on the council were up for grabs Tuesday, and four candidates were looking to fill the positions. George J. Seneck (R) took one position with 313 votes. The race for the other position has not yet been determined, since only eight votes separate the second and third place candidates. Joseph E. Zaczek (D) had 267 votes at the end of the night, and Rodney J. Schultes (R) had 259.