Highland bond issue canvassed despite polling place mishap

WASHINGTON — Washington County supervisors canvassed the votes for a $15 million bond issue at Highland schools Wednesday afternoon, despite earlier reports that the election would face a redo thanks to a precinct that gave some voters the wrong ballots on Election Day.

County Attorney Nathan Repp said some voters at the precinct were given ballots that included the bond issue despite not living in the school district, and reported that some voters who were eligible to vote on the bond issue may have received ballots without the question. Still, he said the county had no authority to unilaterally declare the election result invalid, and should move forward with the canvassing.

Still, the 61% vote in favor of the bond issue may not be set in stone. Repp said constituents could challenge the election’s outcome in court, a move that would take about 22 petition signatures, all from eligible voters in the school district.

“If there’s a question of whether to still canvass the election, the answer to that is, ‘Yes,’” Repp said. “It’s deemed valid unless invalidated at some point by the District Court … it could be challenged by petition.”

If a court finds the outcome invalid, Repp said the matter would likely face another special election, as was previously reported in the Southeast Iowa Union. Otherwise, it’s set to take effect as normal.

The plan to move forward with the canvas reversed earlier statements from county election officials, who said on Nov. 6 they expected the matter to go back to the ballot box at a later date.

County Auditor Dan Widmer said Wednesday he appreciated the guidance from the County Attorney’s Office, after fielding calls from news outlets across the nation about the confusion.

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“There’s some misinformation going around,” he told county supervisors at a meeting Nov. 13, a few hours before canvassing began. “We wanted to tell you gentlemen in case you’re approached.”

The timeline for eligible voters to file a challenge is fairly short. Repp said state code gave a deadline of just three days after an election’s result is canvassed to challenge its outcome, but he wasn’t sure whether that came after the first round of canvassing — Nov. 13 in Washington County — or the second round, which is scheduled for Nov. 19.

With only a 1% margin on the bond issue’s passage, county officials said they weren’t sure whether errors at the Ainsworth precinct made a difference in the election result, and couldn’t verify how many voters were given the wrong ballots.

“A ballot, once figuratively placed into the ballot box, loses all identity,” Repp said. “There’s no way to determine how many people voted on the bond measure that were ineligible, or how many people didn’t have the opportunity to vote on the bond measure that were eligible.”

Repp said the conundrum with Highland’s bond issue wouldn’t affect any other race’s outcome, since the incorrect ballots were identical aside from the bond question.

Even if the bond election’s result is challenged, that wouldn’t have an impact on other Election Day races, like the U.S. House District 1 Race which major news outlets have yet to call over a week later. The Iowa Secretary of State’s election results website shows Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks with a 796-vote lead over challenger Christina Bohannan.

If the bond issue election goes through, it will approve a $15 million debt to help the district pay for a new multipurpose facility, secure entrances at the elementary building, and upgrade the commons area at the high school. The cash would also finance construction of new classrooms and locker rooms. It would take about 20 years to pay off, according to district officials, but would not raise taxes beyond the $2.70 debt service levy needed to pay for the district’s last bond, a $3.7 million debt approved in 2019.

Highland Superintendent Ken Crawford said little about the electoral confusion after Wednesday morning’s county supervisor meeting, but said he was eager to find out whether the schools could act on the projects, either way.

“We’re looking forward to the process moving forward and hoping for the best,” he said.

Comments: Kalen.McCain@southeastiowaunion.com