A recount of a state primary race on Thursday ended with the reelection of Marjorie Decker to represent the 25th Middlesex Democratic for a seventh term.
Challenger Evan MacKay had seemed to edge Decker out by 40 votes at the end of an Election Day count Sept. 3, but after a hand count of some ballots the next day it was the incumbent who was ahead by 41 votes.
Thursday ended with the count showing 3,471 votes for decker and 3,430 for MacKay – the same 41-vote difference.
“I’m excited to get back to work,” Decker told supporters shortly before the new figures were revealed. “There’s so many issues we have worked on together, and the work goes on.”
She thanked supporters at the recount for “believing in the work and participating in the democratic process. I am filled with gratitude and excitement.”
The MacKay campaign filed for a recount after the second-day results. The recount – which would also consider 130 blank and invalid ballots from Election Day, commissioner Tom Stohlman said – was held by the Cambridge Election Commission at the Russell Youth Center, 680 Huron Ave., Strawberry Hill.
The commission opened the doors to the campaigns shortly after 9 a.m. and wrapped up work at 5:45 p.m. with an announcement of the results – determined by breaking up the 7,037 ballots cast by Democrats in the race into groups of 50 that were divided among six count tables. Ethridge King, chair of the commission, explained that each campaign could have two agents at the tables to challenge individual ballots if the intent of a voter seemed debatable.
Challenges would be brought to the commissioner – on Thursday minus Larry Ward – for a decision.
“With such a close margin, voters deserve to know with certainty the exact tally, and that’s why I am requesting a recount, which we hope will be over quickly and make things clear,” MacKay said before the event. “A cornerstone of this campaign has always been that democracy happens in the daylight.”
That the race was so close is remarkable – in Massachusetts, where incumbents can usually expect an easy ride to reelection, and with Decker facing a first-time candidate. While no one running against Decker since her first election had achieved more than 14.5 percent of the district’s vote since 2014, and MacKay was her first challenger since 2018, in this case her district was essentially evenly split on whether she should have two more years on Beacon Hill.
In a statement released after results were released, MacKay said they extended “sincere congratulations to Rep. Decker for her reelection and continued public service for Cambridge.”
To supporters, MacKay said, “The work we were able to accomplish together has been incredible. I’m deeply moved by the ways that our community came together to advocate for issues that matter including housing, transportation and climate justice. I’m eternally grateful for our supporters and volunteers and residents in Cambridge for engaging in state politics and boldly fighting for our core values of social, racial, economic and environmental justice.”
“Although we came up short, the work continues,” MacKay said.
The chair of MacKay’s recount team, Joseph Skitka, had said in a Friday press release that the results from the week’s state primary election indicate a slim margin between the candidates “such that a recount is warranted. Specifically, the margin is less than 1 percent.”
“To ensure transparency and public confidence in the election results, we request a recount to verify the accuracy of the vote count and confirm the final results,” Skitka said.
Final election results will be certified by Saturday, election commissioners said.
In 2013, the commission agreed to a recount petition from city councillor Minka vanBeuzekom when challenger Nadeem Mazen was 14 transfer votes ahead, though ultimately Mazen was seated; last year a School Committee seat swapped between Richard Harding and Andrew King by a three-vote margin, then an eight-vote margin. King opted to let a deadline pass without a recount challenge.
The commission next needs to rerun the numbers from the Nov. 7 municipal election to determine officially who will replace city councillor Joan Pickett, who died Aug. 30. That will take place at 5 p.m. Sept. 19, commissioners said at their Sept. 4 meeting.
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Evan MacKay uses they/them pronouns, not he/him