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WINDSOR – The Bertie County Board of Elections will meet here Wednesday to break two ties in races for commissioner seats in both Aulander and Colerain.

That meeting is set for 12 noon at the Board of Elections Office at 210 West Watson Street, Windsor.

This past Friday, the Elections Board conducted a canvass required by the state to ensure the accuracy of the votes cast during the municipal election held Nov. 7. They also counted the write-in votes cast in each town. Those write-in votes impacted races in Kelford and Powellsville as well as Aulander and Colerain.

In Aulander, voters were asked to fill three unexpired terms on its Board of Commissioners. Richard Jernigan was the only person to file for a seat and he topped the balloting with 86 votes. Ronnie Poppell was named on 56 write-in ballots, thus earning the second unexpired term. The third seat in that race ended in a tie between Phillip Thomas and Ricky Duke, both of whom received five write-in votes.

However, Thomas received 54 votes among four candidates who filed for the two full-term seats on the Aulander Commission. That total was second to Tommy P. Hale’s 67 votes, meaning Thomas could claim a regular term seat.

“It’s up to Mr. Thomas as to which seat he wishes to fill,” said Bertie Board of Elections Director LaToya Peele. “If he chooses the full-term seat, then that leaves Ricky Duke with enough votes to earn the third and final unexpired term seat.”

If Thomas rejects the full-term seat, then the Board of Elections must break the 5-5 tie between he and Duke for the third and final unexpired term seat.

A similar situation exists in two races for seats on the Colerain Board of Commissioners. There, no one filed for the two full-term seats or the one unexpired term seat.

Jacques Turner (7) and Lynn Askew (6) topped the write-in ballots cast for the two full-term seats. However, Turner also received three write-in votes for the one unexpired term. That vote total tied him with Alyssa Fairless and Herbert Copeland.

Peele said that Turner will decide which seat he wants to fill. If he chooses the full-term seat, which is highly likely, then the Elections Board will have to break the 3-3 tie between Fairless and Copeland for the one unexpired term seat.

Meanwhile, the canvass led to the final results being determined in municipal races in Kelford and Powellsville.

In Kelford, the fifth and final seat on the town’s Board of Commissioners will be filled by Gary Scott who received 23 write-in votes. Timmy Eaton (34 votes), Kenneth “KC” Cain (33), Michael A. Johnson Jr. (33), and Raymond S. Eaton (27) were listed as the top four finishers on Nov. 7.

No one filed for Mayor in Powellsville. Five residents there received write-in votes, led by former Mayor James Peele who was named on 10 ballots. Samuel Marteillo (9) and Erica Herring (8) also received write-in votes for Mayor.

All other municipal election results in Bertie County were deemed as official.