Southeast Area : Tally of Late Ballots Breaks Tie in School Race

Updated election returns have broken a tie in votes between two candidates competing for a seat on the Compton school board.

Gorgonio Sanchez Jr.CQ has pulled 51 votes ahead of fellow challenger Mae Thomas for the last available seat on the seven-member board. In the initial tally, the two finished tied for the fourth seat on the ballot, with 2,281 votes, about 8.3% of the total. The revised results show Sanchez with 2,424 votes and Thomas with 2,373.

Since the Nov. 2 election, workers in the county registrar’s office have been counting absentee ballots turned in on Election Day and provisional ballots--which must be checked for authenticity and tallied by hand.

The registrar expects to release final results by Monday. Officials said they could not estimate how many ballots remain to be counted in the Compton election.

The latest returns solidified the results of several other close races.

In the Paramount Unified School District, challenger Richard B. Caldwell increased his lead to 22 votes over incumbent Shirley Elliott for the last available seat on the five-member school board. Caldwell held a five-vote lead after the initial tally.

In the El Rancho Unified School District, which serves Pico Rivera, challenger Eleanor C. Cole strengthened her lead over incumbent E. A. (Pete) Ramirez from 52 to 95 votes for the last open seat on the five-member board.

In the Norwalk-La Mirada Unified School District, incumbent Jesse M. Luera increased his lead from 80 to 100 votes over challenger Sandra (Sandy) J. Thorn for the last spot on the seven-member board.