Primary race too close to call: What happens next in the Ontario County DA battle?
Jason MacBride has taken the lead over the incumbent Ontario County District Attorney, James Ritts, in the Republican primary DA race, according to the county Board of Elections' unofficial results.
MacBride received 2,179 votes after the polls closed on June 24, and Ritts received 2,064 votes.
What does this mean, and what happens next in the race
According to the Ontario County Board of Elections, over 4,000 Ontario County voters cast a ballot in the June 24, 2025, Primary Election.
The unofficial election results that were posted after the polls closed represent the majority of the ballots cast by those voters, making up the in-person ballots, early voters and mail-in ballots, absentee, military and overseas voters, the county BOE said in a statement.
These results also include 256 mail-in ballots (13 Democratic and 244 Republican) that the BOE received by June 22 and the 20 additional mail-in ballots (1 Democratic and 19 Republican), the board has received since then.
As of June 25, the county board said they were still waiting on 361 ballots (20 Democratic and 341 Republican) that were mailed to county voters but not yet returned.
The election results are not considered official until all ballots are received, counted and the results are certified.
New York State's Election Law allows the county to continue receiving mail-in ballots through July 1, 2025. These ballots can only be added to the election results if they are postmarked on or before June 24, 2025.
Every returned mail-in ballot will get reviewed by a bipartisan team before it is counted in the results, the Ontario County BOE said. The county board said it expects the tabulation of remaining mail-in and Affidavit Ballots to be completed by July 1.
When the tabulation is completed, the county said the results will be certified, and the official 2025 Primary Election results will be released to the public.
"The Board recognizes public interest in the outcomes of these election contests and the entire staff is working diligently to complete mandated post-election reviews, testing and audits as quickly as possible," the Ontario County Board of Elections wrote in a statement released on June 25. "We appreciate the public's patience as we complete this process."
In a statement released after the votes were tallied Tuesday night, Ritts said the initial unofficial results "show us trailing by a very close 115-vote margin out of nearly 4,300 votes cast.'
'It is too early to concede the race, as we should wait for any standard review procedures by the Board of Elections, as well as additional absentee ballots to be received by mail in the coming days,' Ritts stated.
According to the Ontario County BOE, NY Election Law 9-208 mandates a full manual recount of the ballots in elections with the margin of victory between candidates being less than .5 percent of votes or less than 20 votes.
The county board stated that if any recounts are required, they will not be scheduled until the week of July 14. The unofficial results in the Ontario County DA primary that are currently posted on the BOE website still show a 115-vote margin victory between MacBride and Ritts.
On Thursday MacBride posted an update to his FaceBook writing, "While the results are still unofficial and every vote must be counted, we stand by our message: Republican voters made it clear they want a District Attorney who is hardworking, respected across the criminal justice system, and committed to doing what's right for victims and for our community."
MacBride said he remains patient and respectful of the election process.
Both candidates will be on the general election ballot in November, regardless of the GOP primary result. Ritts has secured the Conservative Party line while MacBride secured the Truth and Justice line.
To learn more about the electoral process, visit https://www.ontariocountyny.gov/107/Board-of-Elections or call the Ontario County Board of Elections at 585-396-4005.
— Madison Scott is a journalist with the Democrat and Chronicle who covers breaking and trending news for the Finger Lakes Region. She has an interest in how the system helps or doesn't help families with missing loved ones. She can be reached at MDScott@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: Primary race too close to call: What happens next in the Ontario County DA battle?
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