Voting was so close for two seats on the Moore County Board of Education Tuesday that one candidate might be eligible to call for a recount on one or maybe two races.

Whether James F. Koch asks for a recount, or not, the Board of Elections faces the manual counting of paper ballots in four precincts plus the 2,845 absentee ballots cast the one-stop way for one statewide race.

County Elections Director Glenda Clendenin said the hand counting of four precincts and the one-stop ballots is mandated under an interpretation of the 2005 legislation that changed several aspects of North Carolina election laws.

In addition to the one-stop ballots, the hand count will be carried out on ballots cast in the Pinehurst A, Cameron, Eastwood and Taylortown precincts for the office of Supreme Court chief justice.

Clendenin plans to hire about 16 individuals to make the hand count, known in election jargon as the manual "hand to eye sampling." The Board of Elections will oversee the hand count.

The hand count, along with counting 132 provisional ballots, will begin at 9:30 a.m. Tuesday at the Board of Elections office in Carthage.

Sue McKenzie Black received 59 votes more than Koch in the general election for the third at-large seat, a factor that gives Koch the right to call for a recount. Koch is only 132 votes behind Pamela D. Thompson the second-place finisher, and this is exactly the same number of provisional ballots that won't be counted until Tuesday. There remains the possibility that Koch will be eligible to seek a recount in both races.

McKenzie, Thompson and Koch were among six candidates for three seats on the Board of Education. Top vote-getters in unofficial returns were incumbent board member J. Dale Frye, McKenzie and Thompson. Frye's election is not subject to a recount. Frye led the way with 11,384, according to the unofficial returns.

As of late Thursday, Koch had not indicated whether he would seek a recount.

Check Sunday's Pilot and ThePilot.com for the full story.