Candidate's wife forgets to vote, election results in a tie

Robert McDonald learned the hard way that every vote counts.

McDonald, who is known to most people as Bobby, finished in a dead heat Tuesday with Olivia Ballou for the sixth and final seat on the Walton City Council.

Each candidate captured 669 votes, but one ballot McDonald is sure would have gone his way was never cast. His wife, Katie, who works nights as a patient care assistant at Christ Hospital and is finishing nurse’s training at Gateway Community and Technical College, didn’t make it to the polls yesterday.

“If she had just been able to get in to vote, we wouldn’t be going through any of this,” McDonald said. “You never think it will come down to one vote, but I’m here to tell you that it does.”

Did anybody else immediately think of Jerry Gergich, from Parks & Recreation, upon seeing this story? It might be good to keep this in mind, particularly if you think you’ll have friends questioning the value of an individual vote during the next round of elections. Unfortunately, for Robert McDonald, there won’t be a run-off either. The tie is likely to be broken by a coin flip some time next week.