As of 5:15 this evening 11/8 Vice Mayor Joe Cobb now leads former Roanoke Mayor David Bowers in the mayoral election by 46 votes: 14,897 to 14,851, according to the Virginia Board of Elections.
(message from Joe Cobb) As of this evening’s voter registrar update in the mayoral election, we are currently leading the unofficial vote count. This latest update includes the absentee/mail-in ballots counted this week. I want to thank the registrar Nicholas Ocampo and his staff for their diligent work on continuing the certification process of this election.
With hundreds of ballots yet to be counted, I want to underscore the significance of every vote being counted accurately.
While today’s ballot count indicates a small lead, I want to remind everyone that the election results are not yet final and won’t be until all votes have been counted and the election is certified by the electoral board on November 15. I stand behind the certification process and continue to ask that we all do the same with patience and understanding.
Regardless of the outcome, I will respect the decision of the voters and continue working hard for the citizens of Roanoke.
(previously) The Roanoke City Registrar’s Office says they are still counting absentee ballots and the qualifications of those who registered on Election Day, November 5th, a provisional process that was enacted in 2022. At stake is who won the Roanoke race for mayor; at last word earlier this week David Bowers led Vice Mayor Joe Cobb by 11 votes. The registrar’s office says the next update on the vote total will go online this evening; that can be viewed on the Virginia Board of Elections website. Cobb says he will seek a recount if the final vote tally is within the recall margin.
(full release from the City of Roanoke/Director of Elections Nicholas Ocampo)
City of Roanoke Registrar Provides 2024 Local Election Update: Over 40,000 residents of Roanoke cast their ballot in the November 5, 2024, General and Special Elections. This includes the 1,223 voters who voted provisionally during the early in-person voting period and on Election Day.
A provisional ballot is offered to a voter when further research is required to confirm their eligibility to vote. Same Day Registration, a provisional process, was enacted in 2022 to offer individuals the ability to register to vote and cast a ballot on the same day. This process requires extra steps to verify each voter’s eligibility to vote in the polling location in which their ballot was cast.
Our office will continue to carefully and meticulously follow election laws and state guidelines to review each same day registration application in preparation for adjudication by our Electoral Board next week. The next batch of results to be reported will be representative of the absentee ballots dropped off on Election Day at each of our voting locations and absentee ballots postmarked on or before November 5 and received via mail by the state deadline of 12 p.m. today, November 8.
These vote totals will be made available online this evening. Although these practices take extra time, they are a necessity in order to protect the integrity and security of our elections. Thank you for your patience as we continue counting. This year’s election is evidence that every vote counts. Local electoral boards across the Commonwealth have a deadline of Friday, November 15 to certify the results of the election. I have complete confidence Roanoke City will be in compliance with this deadline.
