CHARLOTTE — With only 33 new mail ballots received Wednesday by the Mecklenburg County Board of Elections, Channel 9 is able to officially project Councilman Tariq Bokhari as the winner of the District 6 seat for Charlotte City Council.
Unofficial results Tuesday evening put Bokhari ahead of Democrat Stephanie Hand by 352 votes.
According to the Mecklenburg County Board of Elections, only 33 of a possible 400 outstanding absentee ballots for the race were received on Wednesday.
Of the 400 outstanding ballots, 270 were for overseas voters. The deadline for overseas voters to email their ballot, which the vast majority do, was election day. Overseas voters have the right to mail their ballot but it has to be postmarked by Election Day. All outstanding ballots have to be postmarked by Election Day and received by Monday in order to be counted. The Board of Elections says the number of ballots received each day will decline.
There are only 362 provisional ballots countywide. Provisional ballots are cast by voters when more verification is needed, whether it is due to a precinct or ID issue. Board of Elections members ultimately determine if they count.
There are not enough outstanding ballots in District 6 to change the outcome. The percentage difference between Bokhari and Hand currently sits at 1.52%, which is outside the recount margin of 1%.
Bokhari was first elected to Charlotte City Council in 2017. This will be his fourth term on Charlotte City Council. He is one of two Republicans on council.
(WATCH BELOW: Democrat faces incumbent for historically Republican District 6 seat)
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