Every Vote Really Counts

On January 4, people across Virginia watched a key state election get decided in a very unusual way. With news cameras rolling, an election official reached into a bowl and pulled out one of the two names inside. Then the official announced the winner: David Yancey.

The drawing was between Republican incumbent Yancey and Democratic challenger Shelly Simonds. It marked a critical point in the two-month battle in their neck-and-neck race for a seat in the Virginia House of Delegates. After a recount and a court ruling, the candidates found themselves with 11,608 votes apiece. And according to Virginia state law, tied elections must be settled by “lot,” or a drawing.

The nail-biter of a race is a reminder, says political analyst Quentin Kidd of Christopher Newport University in Virginia, that just one vote can decide an election’s outcome.

“I’ve never had as many conversations with people who are thankful that they voted—or are really upset that they didn’t—than I’ve had since this particular tied election,” Kidd says. “It really does drive home the importance that every vote counts.”

The nail-biter of a race is a reminder, says political analyst Quentin Kidd of Christopher Newport University in Virginia, that just one vote can decide an election’s outcome.

“I’ve never had as many conversations with people who are thankful that they voted—or are really upset that they didn’t—than I’ve had since this particular tied election,” Kidd says. “It really does drive home the importance that every vote counts.”

For many Americans, Virginia’s election cliff-hanger brought back memories of the 2000 U.S. presidential election. That famous race—between Republican George W. Bush and Democrat Al Gore—came down to a difference of just 537 votes out of almost 6 million cast in Florida. With Bush ahead in that state and the results challenged in lawsuits, the U.S. Supreme Court halted a recount there, effectively awarding Bush the state and the presidency.

While nowhere near as far-reaching as a presidential race, the stakes in Virginia were high. Yancey’s win allows Republicans to retain control of the Virginia House by one seat. If Simonds had won, the chamber would have been split 50-50. And it all came down to one questionable ballot.

“This is right up there with Bush v. Gore in my opinion in terms of the unbelievable sequence of events that have led us to where we are,” says Rebecca Green of William & Mary Law School in Virginia.

A first count of ballots showed that Yancey had won by 10 votes. But Simonds asked for a recount. And in the second count, she gained 11 votes—making her the winner by one ballot.

But the next day, a three-judge panel, upon reviewing the recount, allowed an additional, contested ballot to be counted for Yancey. That ballot had the names filled in for both candidates but a slash mark through Simonds’s name. The race was declared dead even—and Virginia held its first tiebreaker in decades. 

For many Americans, Virginia’s election cliff-hanger brought back memories of the 2000 U.S. presidential election. That famous race was between Republican George W. Bush and Democrat Al Gore. It came down to a difference of just 537 votes out of almost 6 million cast in Florida. Bush was ahead in that state, but the results were being challenged in lawsuits. The U.S. Supreme Court stepped in and halted a recount there. The Court’s decision effectively awarded Bush the state and the presidency.

While nowhere near as far-reaching as a presidential race, the stakes in Virginia were high. Yancey’s win allows Republicans to keep control of the Virginia House by one seat. If Simonds had won, the chamber would have been split 50-50. And it all came down to one questionable ballot.

“This is right up there with Bush v. Gore in my opinion in terms of the unbelievable sequence of events that have led us to where we are,” says Rebecca Green of William & Mary Law School in Virginia. 

A first count of ballots showed that Yancey had won by 10 votes. But Simonds asked for a recount. And in the second count, she gained 11 votes. That made her the winner by one ballot.

But the next day, a three-judge panel reviewed the recount. They then allowed an additional, contested ballot to be counted for Yancey. That ballot had the names filled in for both candidates but a slash mark through Simonds’s name. The race was declared dead even. As a result, Virginia held its first tiebreaker in decades. 

While a random drawing may seem like an arbitrary way of deciding something as important as a political race, many experts say it’s actually the fairest way to break ties.

“Some people might argue that an [election] redo would make more sense, but you would end up getting people who didn’t vote the first time voting in the second race,” Kidd says. “That seems less fair than simply breaking the tie by chance.”

A random drawing may seem like an absurd way of deciding something as important as a political race. But many experts say it’s actually the fairest way to break ties.

“Some people might argue that an [election] redo would make more sense, but you would end up getting people who didn’t vote the first time voting in the second race,” Kidd says. “That seems less fair than simply breaking the tie by chance.”

In fact, choosing public officials by drawing has a long history. In ancient Greece, officeholders were selected at random from a pool of candidates. And in 14th-century Florence, Italy, representatives for office were chosen from names drawn out of a sack. The U.S. has also had its fair share of tied elections—and unique ways of deciding them (see “And the Winner Is . . .,” below).

Political experts also hope the Virginia tiebreaker will inspire more people to turn out at the polls, especially this November for the midterm elections.

Currently, Republicans control both chambers of Congress. Not only will all 435 seats in the U.S. House of Representatives be up for grabs, but also 34 U.S. Senate seats and 36 governorships. The outcome of the midterms will make it easier or harder for President Trump to carry out his agenda.

What’s next in Virginia? Simonds has conceded but says she’ll run again in 2019.

“We’ve had an amazing civics lesson,” she told supporters after the tiebreaker, “in the power of every vote.”