Kofi Osei Wins Drawing, Breaks Tie In Towamencin Supervisors Race

TOWAMENCIN TOWNSHIP, PA — Democrat Kofi Osei has won the random draw, breaking the tie in the Towamencin Township Board of Supervisors race. It may mark the end of perhaps the tightest election battle in county history, though Republican Rich Marino could still contest the results.

Osei won the drawing after he and Marino earned exactly 3,035 votes each in the election. Marino had been winning by a handful of votes until a federal court ordered that any mail-in ballots that were undated or improperly dated had to be counted.

Montgomery County plans to certify its election results on Monday, Dec. 4.

Osei declined to declare himself the winner until the certification of results.

"There are options available to Rich and I fully support his right to seek them and will not declare myself a winner until the result is certified with no chance of being overturned," Osei said Friday morning.

It's not clear if Marino will challenge. He has previously stated that he does not agree with the federal court ruling.

"I feel, and I believe a lot of others feel strongly that election rules should not be changed in the middle of an election," Marino said last week. "It is not fair to the candidates nor to the voters. While I disagree with this ruling, if rules are to be changed they should apply to the next election – not one that is competed but not finalized."

Osei, the challenger, ran his campaign largely against the incumbent Marino's support for the Towamencin sewer sale, one of the more polarizing topics in recent township history. While there was a groundswell against the sale — opponents say privatizing the sewer will lead to skyrocketing costs for residents, as in neighboring municipalities — Marino has been long entrenched in the community and, according to Osei, won over voters who disagreed with his policies.

Just 349 ballots across Montgomery County were impacted by the recount, but it was more than enough to throw the race into doubt.