Howell Council Candidate Demands Recount, Lawsuit Says

HOWELL, NJ - More than three weeks after the general election, Andre De Garmeaux, a Democratic candidate challenging Republican incumbent Evelyn O’Connell for a seat on the Howell Township Council, argues that the final election results require a recount.

According to a lawsuit filed Friday in the Superior Court of New Jersey, De Garmeaux’s lawyers say that 317 ballots were rejected for “various reasons”: a small number that could cost current councilwoman Evelyn O’Donnell the seat, the complaint alleges.

“It is Plaintiff's belief that there was a mistake in the count of the votes for the Howell Township Council election. This mistake could be the result of either a miscount or a failure to count certain provisional or other ballots that were cast,” the lawsuit reads.

“This petition encompasses both a manual recount and recheck of the ballots cast as well as a manual count of the absentee, provisional ballots cast and rejected ballots.”

As of Wednesday, De Garmeaux was 320 votes behind the incumbent after over 30,500 ballots were counted.

Berger won reelection with a total of 16,615 votes, compared to that of 14,392 garnered by Republican challenger Suzanne Brennan.