H. Gibbs Flanders Jr., chief judge of the Dublin Judicial Circuit, issued his decision denying the petition of Rallie ‘Rooster’ Cogburn to invali date Gray’s Dec. 1 runoff elec tion two days after taking the matter under consideration.

The order with Flanders’ findings was received by Jones County Superior Court at 11 a.m., Dec. 30. The case, which lasted approximately two hours, was heard Dec. 28. Cogburn filed his petition to contest the election Dec. 8. His objection was that five ballots were not counted by the optical scan machines used to count the votes in the election. That number was significant because it was the exact number of votes by which he lost the election.

The runoff was between Cogburn and incumbent Loretta Lipsey for the office of mayor pro tem. The Nov. 3 election had three candi dates for the post, and Lipsey received the most votes, but not the majority needed to avoid a runoff.

Cogburn asked for, but was denied, a recount of the votes as soon as the results were announced, but because the difference in the votes received by the candidates was not 1 percent or under, it was in the discretion of Gray Election Superintendent Jamie Lewandowski to recount or not.

Flanders’ order briefly stated the facts in the case, showing votes received by Cogburn were 241 and Lipsey 246. The total ballots cast was 492, and the total of votes counted was 487.

A ballot received from Charles Pitts was rejected because the signature on the ballot did not match the sig nature on file with the regis trar’s office. Three other bal lots were rejected because of the lack of photo identifica tion of the voters.

The optical scan machines used in the election were owned by Jones County and tested before the election.

The judge concluded that Pitts’ ballot was not counted and was of no consequence to the outcome of the elec tion. He also stated that the plaintiff did not present evi dence that the optical scan machines were not in work ing order, concluding that the five uncounted ballots were blank when run through the machines.

Flanders said a recount was not mandatory and that the court will not interfere with the election super intendent’s decision not to recount.

After hearing the judge’s opinion, Lewandowski said she was pleased with the outcome and was glad it was over.

Cogburn said he accom plished part of what he set out to do, which was to draw attention to the irregulari ties of the voting process in Gray. He said he still cannot believe that five people went through the entire process of voting and then did not mark their ballots.

“I’m not disappointed, but I would have been happy if the judge had decided in my favor,” he commented.

Cogburn said the Georgia Secretary of State’s office is investigating his com plaint and others that were filed concerning Gray’s Dec. 1 election. He said he was interviewed by an investi­gator from the Secretary of State’s office last week, and Cogburn will be giving the investigator all the evidence he has gathered.

He said the Secretary of State’s investigation may take several weeks, and then the investigator’s informa tion will be presented to the Georgia Board of Elections. That board will decide what happens next.

A state probe into irregu larities of the 2007 City of Jackson general election resulted in fines for elected officials and campaign work ers who assisted absentee voters with ballots and appli­cations for the ballots. The state election board handed down fines ranging from $158,000 to $500 in the case, which was resolved Aug. 27, 2009, according to an article in the town’s newspaper, the Jackson Progress.

“At this point, we have lost the battle but not the war. I don’t wish ill will for anyone, but I do hope that people will pay an appropriate price for what they have done. My goal since Nov. 30, when I filed the complaint, is to clean up the election process from here on, and I’m still working on it,” Cogburn said.