There is still no winner in the 22nd Congressional District, but a winner should be determined soon. Absentee ballots are being counted in several counties. The district runs through eight-counties.
Tuesday, attorneys representing both campaigns made an agreement in court that should help keeps counts accurate.
"Sometimes it takes a court hearing to resolve this. Mr. Long and myself were able to agree mutually as to what the proper procedure would be," said Paul DerOhannesian, the attorney representing Claudia Tenney. "I think it's great because we are ensuring the security of the ballots as well as a reasonable legal procedure for their review."
Democrat Anthony Brindisi has a slight lead over incumbent Republican Claudia Tenney. Last week, Brindisi declared victory in his congressional race against Rep. Claudia Tenney in a House district that stretches from the Mohawk Valley to the Southern Tier.
A judge decided to impound the ballots.
Now the recanvassing of votes from election night polling stations, and canvassing affidavits, military and absentee ballots is taking place. Those ballots now may be checked by campaign representatives.
"That happens sometimes. They fill out an absentee and then they find out they're gonna be here so they show up and vote. Under those circumstances, the absentee is set aside or thrown away. Under this order, we can't throw them away. We're going to make them available for campaigns to review," said Assistant Oneida County Attorney Robert Pronteau.
When votes aren't being reviewed or counted, everything is under lock and key.
"We had a deputy go down and change the locks on the Board of Elections offices," Pronteau said. "Since last Tuesday, the offices have been locked and the only person who can get in is that deputy and he only unlocks the door if both election commissioners are available."
On Wednesday, Broome County Elections Commissioner Phil Grommet said they had 5,000 ballots to count and more than 20 staff members helping in the process.
Neither attorney representing Anthony Brindisi or Claudia Tenney at the count in Oneida County would comment with Spectrum News. However, a few Tenney supporters present during the count said they had concerns over how affidavits were being filed.