WHITEHOUSE, Ohio — With 99% of precincts reporting in Lucas County, the Anthony Wayne school levy appeared headed for defeat late on election night.
In unofficial, uncertified vote totals, the levy failed with 10,097 votes against to 10,021 votes in favor.
According to Anthony Wayne Local Schools, the district is waiting to confirm numbers with the Board of Elections since the results are so close.
AWLS said provisional and absentee ballots are two factors that could impact the final results. According to the district, there are currently 4,426 provisional ballots and 3,800 absentee ballots across Lucas County.
AWLS said election officials will review and verify provisional ballots over the next four days and begin processing and counting absentee ballots on Nov. 15.
"After counting the provisional and absentee ballots, the Board of Elections will determine the final vote totals. If the final margin falls within 0.5% — or approximately 100 votes — a recount will be ordered by the Secretary of State. All of these steps must be completed before the Board of Elections certifies the results on November 20. Until that time, all results remain unofficial," the district said Wednesday.
The proposed five-year, 2.42-mill operational levy was to generate $3.3 million per year to support the day-to-day expenses of the school district.
The district said it needed the funds for current programs and to stay competitive with other schools in Ohio.
"We need additional funding to ensure the preservation of the current instructional programs, services and activities that students need to be successful - and keep our schools competitive with others across the state," literature from the district stated.
"Through careful budgeting, we have been able to stretch our dollars, but increasing costs and no new operational funding approved since 2013 it is becoming increasingly challenging to maintain our current level of services."
Voters last approved a new operational levy in 2013.
Editor's note: This story has been updated to add information from the Anthony Wayne Local School District.
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