TULSA, Okla. — A Tulsa County judge heard a petition Thursday after irregularities in last week's election led to an investigation into one precinct's voting process.
Tulsa City Council District 5 incumbent Mykey Arthrell filed a petition after the voter registry showed 38 people did not receive an extra ballot at Precinct 77, which also contains sub-Precinct 377, for the city council race. Three voters came back to the church to get the ballot, meaning 35 votes potentially weren't cast in the race.
Tulsa County Election Board Secretary Gwen Freeman testified to a full courtroom Thursday that the latest numbers show Grant Miller won by 27 votes.
Miller's team pushed for a recount of votes. The recount of all District 5 city council ballots from all precincts started Thursday at the Tulsa County Election Board where teams of poll workers on both sides watched over the proceedings.
His team also filed a motion to dismiss the case but the judge denied it.
The hearing continued Tuesday morning after the recount which showed Miller up by 24 votes — three fewer than last week. Miller's team said they have five witnesses who could testify they were marked in the registry as only getting a general ballot but they did actually receive District 5 City Council ballots and voted in that race.
The judge did not allow Miller's witnesses to testify on Tuesday, and gave attorneys on both sides until 5 p.m. to present any more case law. The judge expects to have a decision that would either prompt a special election or certify these election results by the time Tulsa City Council holds its inauguration on Dec. 5.
Arthrell released a statement Tuesday suggesting the possibility of a new election:
"Unfortunately, our fight is not over. On Election Day some voters in my district were denied the right to vote on who represents them on the Tulsa City Council. I am doing everything I can to make sure we make it right.
As you may have seen on the news, there were many irregularities in our City Council District 5 election. We are fighting hard to make sure that every voter in my district is given the opportunity to have a say in who represents them. My opponent would rather we pretend the irregularities that happened on Election Day never happened. They DID happen and they very well may have changed the final result of our election. I am going to fight to make sure that my constituents’ voices are heard whether I win or lose. That very well may mean we have to have a new election to get it right."
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