Issues with voting machines may cause Concord school board recount

ELKHART, Ind. - Issues with voting machines may lead to a recount of votes for the Concord Community Schools school board election.

The Elkhart County Clerk informed school officials that the voting machine computer program was unable to exclude certain improper votes. The voting machine vendor confirmed the same results with the County Clerk, according to Concord school officials.

In the recent election, Concord voters were lawfully allowed to vote for only one candidate from District 2 and if they selected more than one, that vote should be considered invalid.

Comparison of unofficial vote totals between District 1 and 2 concluded that invalid ballots were likely counted, district officials said.

It is not yet known if the inclusion of those invalid ballots affected the election outcome.

Concord Community Schools said it cannot legally challenge the vote, only a school board candidate can.

According to the school corporation, election officials and vendors were given more than four months to test if the computer program would catch irregularities, such as invalid votes.