| The Calhoun Commission conducted a mandatory canvass of Tuesday's primary election Friday.
A review of 36 provisional ballots, originally called challenged ballots, resulted in 27 of the ballots being approved and nine discounted.
A number of the contested ballots involved poll workers who worked out of their registered district, but nonetheless contested.
A tight House of Delegates race has David Walker of Clay leading Ron Blankenship of Calhoun by 15 votes in the three-county 33rd Delegate District.
Yesterday's canvass in Grantsville increased Blankenship by ten votes.
Provisional ballot canvassing that could make changes in that race
will not be known until next week.
Gilmer County started their canvass yesterday at 1 p.m., with results not available last night.
Clay County started their canvass, but voted to continue it Monday.
Former Clay County commissioner Jimmy Sams and Walker's daughter, Stephanie Ahart, represented Walker's interests during yesterday's canvass.
Sams and Walker went on record protesting twelve of the ballots approved by the Calhoun commission.
Their protesting yesterday does not have official weight, unless the matter is moved forward into a recount or possibly a court decision.
Most of those ballots involved registered voters, voting out of their district. They did not contest poll workers voting out of district.
Calhoun Commission's have historically approved voters who went out of district to cast their ballots, because of a uniform ballot within the county.
"That would be opposed to Clay or Gilmer County, who have split ballots with separate House and Senate Districts," said Richard Kirby, County Clerk.
A few of the reasons ballots were not counted - one person voted an early ballot and attempted to vote a second time election day, while some individuals attempted to vote and just weren't registered.
Commissioners Sampson, Helmick and Weaver, Clerk Richard Kirby and his office staff, and special election workers held the canvass. The county's ballot commissioners Republican Nancy Bremar and Democrat Melissa Hixon also observed the canvass.
The canvass, which included precinct review, lasted all day, ending at about 5:30 p.m.
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