Colvin wins ASD Board of Education District 7 by seven votes

3,059 votes were cast

ALAMOSA – Patrick Alan Colvin, challenger for the District 7 seat on the Alamosa School District Board of Education, was declared the winner of the race following a Wednesday afternoon recount by Alamosa County Clerk Nicole Jaramillo. Colvin won by a paper thin margin of seven votes – one fifth of one per cent - out of the total 3,059 votes that were cast.

Incumbent Amy Raya won the vote in Alamosa County by four votes but among the 27 votes cast in Conejos County, part of which is included in the Alamosa School District, Colvin pulled ahead by eleven votes which proved to be enough to win the election.

The recount was conducted with all the same procedures in place during a regular election, Jaramillo said, including clearing out the machines, making sure they were “zeroed” and running test ballots prior to the actual recount. “And, of course, I have the election judges who follow their procedures. They are always involved,” Jaramillo says.

Each party has an election judge present during an election. In some cases, they are appointed by the party and, in other cases, they sign up on their own. The judges who were present during Wednesday’s recount have been involved in numerous elections and were very familiar with the procedures.

Jaramillo said that she has affixed the seal to the envelope containing the results, which certifies them as official.

Alamosa School District Board President Dr. Michael Mumper said in a statement, “I am excited to have four new members joining the Board.  This will be the first time in many years that we have a full seven-person School Board.”

When asked about the make up of the new board where over half of the board members are new to their positions, Mumper said, “The new board members bring a wide range of experiences and interests. I look forward to working with them to make Alamosa the best school in the region. I am anxious to get them all sworn in and to get to work with our new Board team.”

New board members will be sworn in during a special session of the Board of Education scheduled for 6:00pm on December 7.