Olszewski wins by 9 votes, Brochin will petition for recount

A room in the Baltimore County Board of Elections office in Hunt Valley had been a vortex of activity for two days as workers counted the ballots that would reveal the winner of the Democratic primary for Baltimore County executive. But a tense silence filled the room in the moments leading up to the news: 

Former state delegate John Olszewski Jr. ended the day with nine more votes than state Sen. Jim Brochin. That final tally includes all absentee and provisional ballots. Councilwoman Vicki Almond came in a close third. 

It was an amazingly tight raise, especially in light of recent poll numbers. A Baltimore Sun-University of Baltimore poll released in mid-June had Brochin leading with 30 percent of the vote, Almond with 22 percent, and Olszewski trailing with just 14 percent. The same poll showed Republican Del. Pat McDonough with 39 percent of the vote compared to Al Redmer’s 34 percent. Redmer, the state’s insurance commissioner, went on to win his party’s primary. 

“We are thrilled to be where we are and we trust the process,” Olszewski said at a press conference outside the courthouse in downtown Towson on Friday evening, “and we look forward to tomorrow and to the day after.”

Sen. Jim Brochin

Because the two candidates are within 0.1 percent of each other, Brochin can petition for a recount and his campaign would not have to pay for it. And he said that’s what he plans to do. 

“I don’t see how we couldn’t,” Brochin said by phone Friday evening. “For nine votes you have to be certain. And if we lose we’ll accept it and be adults and move on.”

Moments before the final votes were announced

Election officials said that the petition for a recount, which would be paid for by the county, must come within three days of the results being certified by the county’s Board of Elections. That’s expected to happen within the next week to 10 days. You can read more about the re-count process here.

“We certainly want to double check and verify,” Brochin said. “But the people at the Board of Elections did an amazing job.” 

Katie Brown, director of Baltimore County Board of Elections, gives direction in absentee ballot scanning process

Del. Steve Lafferty, who represents the Towson area and who backed Olszewski, said on Friday evening that he was happy for his candidate.

“It demonstrates that every vote counts,” Lafferty said. “All three candidates ran terrific campaigns.” 

One scanner’s count of absentee ballots

The campaign was marked by attacks from Almond’s camp  claiming Brochin had an “A” rating from the NRA and was too conservative to be the Democrats’ candidate. Brochin did take NRA and other pro-gun money up until 2010, but in 2014 he received an “F” from the NRA — his current grade — after voting in favor of the Maryland Firearms Act of 2013. 

Almond’s attack ads were paid for by a slate that was started by former County Executive Jim Smith, and by a super PAC that was largely funded by local developers. 

Vicki Almond

Brochin routinely criticized Almond for what he called “pay-to-play” politics in which, he said, her votes were too friendly to the developers that gave her campaign money. Olszewski — whose name is pronounced “Ol-shess-kee” but who is often referred to as Johnny O — was able to largely stay out of the fray.

Almond’s spokeswoman, Mandee Heinl, said her team would meet Monday and have more to say next week.

Johnny O with his father, John Olszewski Sr., a former councilman

In a Facebook post Friday evening, Brochin said: “I am humbled by the support we received in this election, and I want to thank everyone who sacrificed so much on my behalf. Also, I want to thank the Baltimore County Board of Elections for their tremendous hard work. Obviously, in an election this close, we will be exploring the possibility of requesting a recount. Finally, my best to Johnny O on a hard fought campaign.”

The winner of the Democratic primary will face Republican Al Redmer in the general election.

-Kris Henry,
The Towson Flyer