22 votes separate council race - NBC12.com - Richmond, VA News

A city council race that was too close to call election night is heading towards a major upset for the sitting councilman.

Election officials counted provisional ballots for District One - it's looking like incumbent Bruce Tyler will be unseated by opponent Jon Baliles.

22 votes now separate the prospective winner - Jon Baliles - from councilman Bruce Tyler.

But that doesn't mean it's the end of this neck-and-neck race over the city's west end.

Election board head Kirk Showalter verified which provisional ballots would be eligible to be cast.

The Baliles-Tyler race had thirty provisional ballots, but only 11 of those were deemed valid, and then counted.

The tally - Baliles won 6,340 votes, Tyler 6,318. But this may not be the final count.

Tyler can request a recount and hinted that he would do just that.

"It's a very, very close election. As things move forward, I will follow the process," said Tyler.

His opponent, the son of a former Virginia governor, released this statement:

"We hope and expect the vote will remain the same through the recount, but it looks like election night will last a few more days until we know for certain and remain cautiously optimistic."

The election board will certify the results, so far, Tuesday.

A panel of judges will have the final say if a recount goes forward. Election officials say that's not uncommon.

"There have been a couple of races where the votes have been two votes apart, so we've had quite a few that were this close," said Showalter.

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