Wells Holds One Vote Lead Over Chisholm In School Committee Race

WOBURN, MA — When the final ballot, opened Monday, proved to be for a different election, Woburn's school committee race was finally decided. While both won re-election to the committee, John Wells will get a four-year term, while Patricia Chisholm will have to run again in just two years. Wells beat Chisholm by a single vote, according to unofficial results.

Wells and Chisholm won the second and third most votes, with 3512 and 3511. Fellow incumbent Ellen Crowley came in first with 3663, winning a four-year term, while newcomers Andrew Lipsett and Colleen Cormier will join the committee for two-year terms.

City registrars opened a final, overseas ballot Monday morning, with a one vote difference separating Wells and Chisholm. However, it turned out to be for the preliminary election, so it had no impact. The city charter has no provision for a tie in a general election, so it was unknown what would happen if the overseas ballot has gone to Chisholm and not Wells.

City Clerk William Campbell said this is the closest race he's seen in Woburn.

"The only other one I can think of is a preliminary race with a 2-vote difference between second and third," he said.

Wells had never won a four-year term before, despite serving on the committee since 2002. Chisholm said that if the race had ended in a tie, she would have conceded the four-year term to him.

"It's important for people to realize: every vote does count," Chisholm said.

There was also a re-canvass of the vote in one precinct, as a result of write-in votes being double counted. At the end of the election night, poll workers meant to run "overvote" ballots through the tabulator, where there are more candidates selected in a race than allowed, blanking out the affected races. But they accidentally ran the write-in ballots, instead, which had already been counted.

Campbell's office contacted the secretary of state's office for advice, then got a court order to re-canvass the votes in that precinct.

Christopher Huffaker can be reached at chris.huffaker@patch.com and 412-265-8353.