A just-completed recount of votes in Castle Rock’s controversial open carry of firearms election shows little change in what voters decided last month, according to official totals released Thursday.
On Referendum A, which asked whether the town manager should lose the authority to ban the open carry of firearms in public buildings and parks, there were 4,749 “yes” votes and 4,595 “no” votes.
That differs slightly from the original count of 4,737 “yes” votes and 4,586 “no” votes.
On Referendum B, which asked whether future firearms restrictions in Castle Rock should be decided by voters, the “yes” tally was 6,615 votes in the recount as compared with 6,610 votes in the original count.
The “no” column for Referendum B amounted to 2,683 votes in the recount versus 2,679 in the original count.
Election officials said the discrepancy was because of “over-votes,” whereby a voter marked both yes and no on a question.
It took Castle Rock 10 days to finalize its original vote count after the Aug. 19 special election. People now are allowed to carry visible firearms into public facilities in the town, with the exception of courts and schools.
The recount was prompted by a series of complaints filed by various parties about how election officials in Castle Rock counted ballots. The vote-counting process also triggered a couple of lawsuits, which were dismissed. One lawsuit is still pending.
John Aguilar: 303-954-1695, jaguilar@denverpost.com or twitter.com/abuvthefold
