Absentee Votes Still Being Counted In Tomlinson-Davis Race

Editor's Note: A previous version of this story was unclear on where the vote count in the Davis-Tomlinson race stood on Tuesday. County officials said there were not enough provisional ballots in play to change the race's outcome, but that some votes, including absentee and military ballots, remained to be counted.

DOYLESTOWN, PA — The final phase of vote counting in the tight race for a state senate seat in Lower Bucks County had begun Wednesday morning.

On Wednesday, the last phase of counting included military and overseas votes, which did not have to arrive until 5 p.m. on Tuesday to be counted. On Tuesday, officials said the number of provisional ballots in the county was not enough to significantly impact state Sen. Tommy Tomlinson's 100-vote unofficial lead over his challenger, Democratic state Rep. Tina Davis.

County spokesman Larry King said Tuesday that officials are now ensuring all of the ballots are counted — including all of the absentees — before knowing whether the final unofficial margin has narrowed or widened.

On Wednesday, King said "regular absentee" ballots already have been included in the race's count, meaning the military and overseas votes are at the heart of what remains to be counted.

A final absentee-ballot summary run on Wednesday morning showed 134 yet votes to be counted in the Senate race, King said. Of those, 71 were from registered Democrats, 46 were from registered Republicans and 17 were from others, he said — though it was not yet known how those people had voted in the race.

King said a preliminary certification in the race is not expected before next week. At that point, Davis would be allowed under Pennsylvania law to request a recount in the race because it was so close.

Shortly after midnight last Tuesday, it appeared that Davis had fallen exactly 100 votes short in her effort to unseat Tomlinson in the District 6 race.

The unofficial vote total from the Bucks County Board of Elections was 54,319 to 54,219.

Tomlinson declared victory the next day. While the Davis campaign has remained publicly quiet, they, like their counterparts with the Tomlinson campaign, have been actively keeping an eye on the official vote count as it has played out.

Counting took a break on Monday, with county offices closed for Veterans Day.

Davis, as is allowed by Pennsylvania law, also was seeking re-election to her House seat while seeking to knock off Tomlinson. She won that race handily, defeating Republican Anthony Sposato, 13,332 to 8,131

Davis, 58, hails from Bristol Township, while Tomlinson, 72, is from Bensalem.

The 6th Senate District includes includes Bensalem, Bristol, Lower Southampton, Middletown, Northampton, Warwick, and Wrightstown townships, as well as Bristol, Hulmeville, Ivyland, Langhorne, Langhorne Manor, and Penndel boroughs.

Photos courtesy Tomlinson, Davis campaigns