Update: Measure B Likely to Fail; Officials May Ask for Recount

Updated 1:40 p.m., Thursday, May 5

Unofficial results Wednesday afternoon show an emergency funding measure for the New Haven School District just shy of passing.

As of Wednesday afternoon, , had received 7,851 (66.43 percent) votes in its favor and 3,967 (33.57 percent) votes in opposition—within 100 votes of passing—according to the Alameda County Registrar of Voters. While the results indicate that most voters in the school district, which includes parts of South Hayward, approve of the $180 annual parcel tax, the measure requires a two-thirds majority (66.7 percent) in order to pass.

Though the results are unofficial, the numbers reflect a count of all ballots cast in the election, both mailed to the Registrar’s Office and collected from drop-off boxes Tuesday night, said Deputy Registrar of Voters Cynthia Cornejo. “We just can’t call it ‘official’ until it’s certified,” Cornejo said.

A 100 percent manual tally is being conducted, Cornejo said. The official results may not be available until Thursday, she said.

But Measure B supporters aren't giving up hope yet.

Campaign manager Richard Valle said ballots at Union City's were picked up two hours early at 6 p.m. Tuesday, instead of 8 p.m., leaving some ballots uncounted. Because the post office was closed and there was no representative to collect the ballots, some voters may have left them in the mail, he said.

Valle raised a number of concerns. There are 37 undervotes—ballots that may have been unmarked or incorrectly marked. “We want to physically examine those ballots in front of the Registar’s staff and tell us why it’s being kicked out and not counted,” he said. Another 28 ‘Yes’ votes could change the decision, he said.

“Because the margin of error is so small, we believe these things are critical to get the real numbers,” Valle said. “It could flip.

“We’re trying to work with the ROV. We’re not trying to be adversarial,” Valle said. “There’s a lot that hangs in the balance, and that’s why we’re being so persistent.”

The ROV has agreed to meet with NHUSD Superintendent McVeigh and Alameda County District 2 Supervisor Nadia Lockyer on Monday, Valle said.

Registrar of Voters spokesman Guy Ashley said he was unaware of any outstanding ballots. "I believe we got all the ballots at the time we were supposed to collect them," he said Thursday afternoon.

Valle said Thursday that he hoped to set up a meeting with the Registrar of Voters by the end of the day to voice their concerns and find out what available options there are. In a press release issued by the school district Wednesday, Valle said he may seek a recount.

McVeigh said she is also “committed to making sure no voters were disenfranchised.”

“We need to take every step to advocate for the education of our children,” McVeigh said in the press release.

Wednesday afternoon’s numbers showed 711 ballots, 553 "Yes" votes, had been counted since polls closed Tuesday night. At 8 p.m. Tuesday, there were 7,298 (65.71 percent) votes in favor of the measure and 3,809 (34.29 percent) against it.

Originally a vote-by-mail-only election, the campaign committee was able to raise $55,000 — $5,000 more than they expected — which helped cover the costs of satelite drop-off locations at Our Lady of the Rosary Church and Alameda County Fire Station No. 32. City Hall and the U.S. Post Office on Alvarado-Niles Road were also designated ballot return sites.

If passed, Measure B, a $180 parcel tax, would generate $3 million a year for the next four years to help preserve instructional time, maintain after-school activities and minimize class size increases. Annually, the tax would equate to $15 a month and would include exemptions for seniors and disabled residents. No money would go toward administrators’ salaries or for facilities maintenance, according to the ballot statement.

Without the parcel tax dollars, the district faces a budget shortfall of more than $10 million next school year. In March, the district approved , including teachers and counseling staff, and the . The James Logan High School and Alvarado and Cesar Chavez Middle Schools .  

“It’s very clear that a majority of voters in our District understand the funding difficulties  that public education is facing and were willing to reach into their own pockets to help,” McVeigh said.

“If indeed it is true that we fell just short of the super-majority we needed to pass the measure, that’s extremely unfortunate," she said. "The cuts that the state is forcing us to make are very real, and they’re going to have a very real impact on our children.”