NEW JASPER TOWNSHIP — Sometimes, there’s a tie.

That’s what happened Nov. 7 in the race for New Jasper Township Board of Trustees, unofficial results revealed.

Mike Rasey, incumbent, and Lisa Townsend, challenger, both received exactly 234 votes. That’s 24.92 percent of the vote for each of them.

Greene County Board of Elections Director Llyn McCoy explained that tied races at the unofficial count are often resolved after outstanding absentees and provisional ballots are added to the count. There was only one time she remembers, she said, that a tie was resolved by a coin toss.

According to McCoy, recounts are not considered or ordered until the board of elections does the official count and certifies it. The count must have a difference of .5 percent.

“Often times even with a small difference an automatic recount is not triggered. The count has to have a difference of one half of one percent,” she said.

One spot on the board is certain, though — Mike Horsley will continue serving as trustee. Owning 50.16 percent of the vote, he led the field by 237 votes — totaling to 471. Horsley’s current term expires in December. He’s served as trustee for four years, and has also been a part of the New Jasper Township zoning commission and worked in a small business for 42 years

Rasey’s term is also expiring. He also served as a member of the New Jasper Fire Department for 35 years and as a member of the Greene County Regional Planning Commission. He retired from Kroger as a produce manager after 42 years.

Townsend, who would be a new face on the board, is a current part-time rural route carrier for the United States Post Office. She graduated from Sinclair Community College.

“I will help guide the economic development by ensuring quality public services. I will do so by ensuring our fire, EMS and road crews have the equipment, training and supplies they need to provide our community with distinctive service. I will work with the sheriff’s department as a liaison to communicate our need here in New Jasper Township. I would tackle this job with open mind and ears to help facilitate what our community wants and needs,” Townsend said in this newspaper’s pre-election candidate questionnaire.

Greene County Board of Elections will certify the official results at their regular business meeting Wednesday, Nov. 22.