A Louisiana judge ruled Tuesday that a candidate’s one-vote win was void due to illegal votes and that a new election would have to be held.
Democrat Henry Whitehorn won the race for Caddo Parish sheriff in November, beating Republican John Nickelson by one vote out of the more than 43,000 cast, according to KSLA. The ruling by retired Louisiana Supreme Court Justice E. Joseph Bleich found that “it was proven beyond any doubt that there were at least 11 illegal votes cast and counted” and that it is “legally impossible to know what the true vote should have been,” per the outlet.
Nickelson filed a lawsuit requesting a new election after an initial recount left Whitehorn’s couldn’t-be-smaller victory margin intact, KSLA reported. Bleich was assigned to the case after three judges recused themselves due to affiliations with the candidates, according to the outlet.
BREAKING: Judge Orders New Election For Caddo Parish Sheriff In Shreveport Louisiana Where The Democrat Candidate Won By ONE VOTE After Dead People Turned Out To Cast Ballots! @ScottPresler Has Been All Over This Race! https://t.co/KC25hvMWFV
— John Basham (@JohnBasham) December 5, 2023
The ruling states that two people voted twice, four votes were cast by unqualified votes and at least five absentee or mail-in ballots were counted despite not complying with the law, according to KSLA. (RELATED: Judge Orders Re-Do Of Democratic Primary After Video Shows Absentee Ballot Stuffing)
Both parties have until 9:56 a.m. on Friday to appeal Bleich’s decision, KSLA reported.
A similar incident unfolded in 1999 when the Louisiana state Supreme Court ordered a new election in the Red River Parish sheriff’s race, which was decided by just three votes. Authorities discovered five votes were wrongly counted, according to KTBS.