Hedrick Says He’Ll Wait On Primary Vote Recount Schools Superintendent Candidate To Decide After Official Tally

State schools superintendent ca didate Wally Hedrick said he will wait until Wednesday’s official vote tally to decide whether to ask for a recount in a close Democratic primary race.

Hedrick, who was defeated by Moscow elementary school principal Marilyn Howard, said the official canvassing results from the 44 counties will help him make the recount decision.

“You wait until you see what those final numbers are and then you look at those precincts and see if there’s anything unusual,” he said. “We’ll take our time to look at it.”

Hedrick, the Meridian School Board chairman, has 20 days to decide whether to call for a recount.

Howard said Hedrick left a message on her answering machine last week saying he would most likely appeal the election.

But she said that was before the official canvass in Bingham County showed that she had received 283 more votes than initially reported on May 26.

Unofficial election night returns put Howard in the lead by 84 votes. With the Bingham County tally, she now leads by 367 votes.

“I’m not worried about it,” she said. “We’re simply moving ahead planning our campaign.”

The Democratic winner will face incumbent Republican Anne Fox in November for the state’s top education job.