NORTH ROYALTON, Ohio – The two-man race for the Ward 6 City Council seat is still so close that the margin has triggered an automatic recount for later this week.
According to official results from the Cuyahoga County Board of Elections, released Nov. 25, incumbent Michael Wos won the race by five votes over challenger Edward Cyngier. The vote count was 692-687.
Originally, on the night of the Nov. 4 election, the race was a dead tie, according to unofficial results. That was before late-coming absentee ballots, postmarked the Monday before the election, and provisional ballots were evaluated and counted.
The elections board has scheduled the automatic recount for 9:30 a.m. Thursday (Dec. 4). The recount will be done at the election board’s Elections Warehouse, 3951 Perkins Avenue.
Ohio law requires an automatic recount in municipal elections whenever the vote margin between candidates is .5 percent or less.
The margin between votes for Wos and Cyngier is .36 percent.
Recounts are also taking place in races for the Bedford and Orange boards of education and North Randell Village Council.
If Wos wins the election, he will be the only Republican left on city council. Democrats swept the other races, reflecting a national trend.
Democrats won races across the United States, including those for New Jersey and Virginia governors and New York City mayor.
