Ohio Democrat Danny O'Connor just gained nearly 200 votes after uncounted ballots discovered

(Image credit: AP Photo/John Minchillo)

Election officials in Ohio's Franklin County discovered 588 uncounted ballots from Tuesday's special election in the state's 12th congressional district, and after they were counted, Democrat Danny O'Connor netted 190 votes. That cut Republican Troy Balderson's lead to 1,594 votes, with 3,435 provisional ballots and 5,048 absentee ballots left to be processed by Aug. 24. "The votes from a portion of one voting location had not been processed into the tabulation system," the Franklin County Board of Elections said in a statement, according to the Cincinnati Enquirer.

O'Connor hasn't conceded the race, in which a colorful Green Party candidate, Joe Manchik, picked up at least 1,127 votes. But Balderson still has the upper hand, The Columbus Dispatch explains:

He needs to win about 57 percent of the remaining 8,483 uncounted ballots to make up the deficit. While that might sound doable, the 8,483 total assumes every single provisional ballot will be counted and that every single uncounted ballot that was mailed overseas or to a member of the military is returned within 10 days. [The Columbus Dispatch]

If the final tally shows a difference of 0.5 percentage points or less between Balderson and O'Connor, there will be an automatic recount. Either way, the two candidates will face each other again in three short months.

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Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.