Coin Toss Decides Tied DeWitt Co. Board Race
By: Jacob Long, WMBD/WYZZ-TV
Updated: November 26, 2012
CLINTON - A tied board race in DeWitt County now has a declared winner.
County clerk and recorder Dana Smith settled the matter with a coin toss Monday afternoon in her office.
Incumbent Republican Terry Ferguson called "tails," but Smith's quarter landed on "heads."
That means his opponent, Independent George Wissmiller, is the new board member of district "b."
Following the outcome, Ferguson said, "I'm disappointed, but I guess that's the way the quarter gets flipped."
Wissmiller reacted by saying he is pleased with the results. But he also blasted the tie-breaking process.
He likened it to forced gambling by the government.
"This is such a departure from anything even approaching a democratic election process. Plus, I question the fundamental fairness of a non-gambler being forced to gamble as a condition of holding public office," he said in a prepared statement.
To further prove his point, Wissmiller said he is not taking a paycheck for his board seat.
He admitted that is not a large amount of money, but said, "I do not agree to this or consider it acceptable or fair. It is something I am being forced into very much against my will."
Ferguson now has five days to file for a discovery recount. As of Monday afternoon, he said he had not made up his mind.
"I'm glad it's over. I haven't made a decision about asking for a recount yet," he said.
The men were forced into a tie-breaker when election results came back dead even.
"We waited 14 days for our absentees to come in. We had a mandatory re-tab, and then we had a tie," Smith said.
Illinois has no specific rules for situations like this, so Smith had to get creative. Her only restriction was to have a declared winner within 21 days of the election.
"Well, we just needed something to break a tie. We have to have a winner," she said.
Originally, the rolling of dice was planned, but Wissmiller objected to that.
And as it turns out, tt was a close race all along.
Before the absentees and re-tab, only two votes separated the men.
County clerk and recorder Dana Smith settled the matter with a coin toss Monday afternoon in her office.
Incumbent Republican Terry Ferguson called "tails," but Smith's quarter landed on "heads."
That means his opponent, Independent George Wissmiller, is the new board member of district "b."
Following the outcome, Ferguson said, "I'm disappointed, but I guess that's the way the quarter gets flipped."
Wissmiller reacted by saying he is pleased with the results. But he also blasted the tie-breaking process.
He likened it to forced gambling by the government.
"This is such a departure from anything even approaching a democratic election process. Plus, I question the fundamental fairness of a non-gambler being forced to gamble as a condition of holding public office," he said in a prepared statement.
To further prove his point, Wissmiller said he is not taking a paycheck for his board seat.
He admitted that is not a large amount of money, but said, "I do not agree to this or consider it acceptable or fair. It is something I am being forced into very much against my will."
Ferguson now has five days to file for a discovery recount. As of Monday afternoon, he said he had not made up his mind.
"I'm glad it's over. I haven't made a decision about asking for a recount yet," he said.
The men were forced into a tie-breaker when election results came back dead even.
"We waited 14 days for our absentees to come in. We had a mandatory re-tab, and then we had a tie," Smith said.
Illinois has no specific rules for situations like this, so Smith had to get creative. Her only restriction was to have a declared winner within 21 days of the election.
"Well, we just needed something to break a tie. We have to have a winner," she said.
Originally, the rolling of dice was planned, but Wissmiller objected to that.
And as it turns out, tt was a close race all along.
Before the absentees and re-tab, only two votes separated the men.
