“So many tears I’ve cried
So much pain inside
But baby it ain’t over ’til it’s over”

-Lenny Kravitz

It’s recount Monday. For Representative-Elect Cindy Weed, today’s recount in Montgomery and Enosburgh confirmed her victory albeit by two votes fewer than the tabulators told us on election day. While Weed lost her hometown of Enosburgh, Montgomery voters put her over the top to take back her seat in the House from Rep. Larry Fiske who defeated her in 2014.

Franklin County Democratic Committee Chair Ed Ballantyne reported that Rep. Fiske raised doubts about the handling of absentee ballots at the meeting of the canvassing committee last week. (After elections, the Chairs of each major party or their representatives meet to certify the results.) It will be interesting to see if Fiske and the Franklin County GOP pursue any further action now that the recount has upheld the election night results.

For Rep. Sarah Buxton of Tunbridge, the election is still not decided. As of election night, Buxton, the Democratic incumbent, had the edge over her perennial opponent Republican David Ainsworth 1,003 to 1,000. The recount now has it as a dead even 1,000 to 1,000. If the courts certify the recount as a tie, then Buxton and Ainsworth will face off again in a runoff election. This isn’t the first time Rep. Buxton and Mr. Ainsworth have had a close result. In 2010, Buxton defeated Ainsworth, at the time the incumbent, by a single vote.

In 2012 I won a seat in the House by just 20 votes. I just lost a bid to return by 69 votes. If my race and the experiences of Rep. Buxton, David Ainsworth, Cindy Weed, and Rep. Fiske teach us anything it’s that voting really does make a difference.  Now that I’m out of the candidate business for the foreseeable future, I’m happy to be back at GMD. Hello again, blogosphere!