We’ve got something for you if you’re looking for irregularities in your local elections. Columbia, New Hampshire. It’s way up north. A tiny little town that, according to the 2020 US Census, had 695 residents. But according to the Secretary of State, Maggie Hassan received 1,106 votes from the same town.
Please scroll down for updates.
Don Bolduc had 193 votes.
| State of New Hampshire – General Election | ||||
| November 8, 2022 | United States Senator | |||
| Coos County | Bolduc, r | Hassan, d | Kauffman, l | Scatter |
| Columbia | 193 | 1106 | 4 | 0 |
The State Website reports Columbia, NH, had 735 residents in 2019. Columbia, NH’s website says the population in 2010 was 798. Wikipedia cites a decline based on the 2020 census to 695.
How were over 1300 votes cast in a town with a population under 700 at least and under 800 at best?
Someone up there might want to request the same-day registration list. Your town doubled in size overnight.
[Update 11/13] – I received some outreach, including this.
It’s called a typo pic.twitter.com/0vKBB0DqBT
— John Tackeff (@jtackeff) November 13, 2022
…and this seems the most likely reason, but now we’ve got something else to consider. The total for the county for Maggie Hasan includes the typo.
| State of New Hampshire – General Election | ||||
| November 8, 2022 | United States Senator | |||
| Coos County | Bolduc, r | Hassan, d | Kauffman, l | Scatter |
| At. & Gil. Academy Grant | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Bean’s Grant | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Bean’s Purchase | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Berlin | 1328 | 1589 | 83 | 0 |
| Cambridge | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Carroll | 200 | 217 | 10 | 0 |
| Chandler’s Purchase | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Clarksville | 89 | 62 | 6 | 1 |
| Colebrook | 515 | 341 | 26 | 1 |
| Columbia | 193 | 1106 | 4 | 0 |
| Crawford’s Purchase | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Cutt’s Grant | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Dalton | 233 | 215 | 10 | 0 |
| Dix’s Grant | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Dixville | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 |
| Dummer | 80 | 50 | 3 | 0 |
| Errol | 116 | 63 | 2 | 0 |
| Erving’s Location | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Gorham | 532 | 733 | 21 | 2 |
| Green’s Grant | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Hadley’s Purchase | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Jefferson | 328 | 201 | 10 | 0 |
| Kilkenny | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Lancaster | 616 | 608 | 63 | 0 |
| Low & Burbank’s Grant | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Martin’s Location | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Milan | 322 | 276 | 16 | 1 |
| Millsfield | 14 | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| Northumberland | 416 | 318 | 18 | 2 |
| Odell | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Pinkham’s Grant | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Pittsburg | 317 | 146 | 7 | 0 |
| Randolph | 67 | 170 | 4 | 0 |
| Sargent’s Purchase | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Second College Grant | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Shelburne | 115 | 107 | 3 | 0 |
| Stark | 161 | 86 | 5 | 0 |
| Stewartstown | 212 | 83 | 6 | 0 |
| Stratford | 119 | 124 | 8 | 0 |
| Success | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Thompson & Meserve’s Pur. | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Wentworth’s Location | 12 | 6 | 1 | 0 |
| Whitefield | 504 | 546 | 39 | 1 |
| TOTALS | 6,491 | 7,059 | 345 | 8 |
Her actual total (assuming the typo) is 6059, which means Bolduc won Coos County. It’s only 1000 votes, you say, and in this race, that’s not much. Hassan won by over 57,000 votes. But it does beg the question; are there any more typos?
And can they or do they matter?
[Update 2 11/13] The Secretary of State seemed surprised, and I am told is investigating, but a reader sent me this.
It’s 106, but it is also 1106. So, not a typo so much as a very poorly drawn “1” that lead to a typo.
Here is the complete ballot signed and delivered.
With only 309 total ballots, human error is clearly responsible for this bizarre reporting from the Secretary of State’s records. But we have to wonder, again, is this an outlier. Given all the other potential issues we’re reporting, we hope so.
[Update 3 11/14/22] – The NH SoS has a press release on correcting the vote total in Columbia/Coos County.
Correction Issued in Coos County Tally for US Senate Race
Democrat Maggie Hassan remains the winner of the US Senate Race.
CONCORD, NH (November 14 , 2022): Following General Election night, the Secretary of State’s Office originally reported that US Senate candidate Maggie Hassan received 1,106 votes in the town of Columbia, Coos County based on information submitted on the official “Return of Votes” form. The reported number far exceeded the number of ballots actually cast in the town. The Secretary of State has confirmed with the town clerk of Columbia that Senator Hassan only received 106 votes on election night. The original figure entered was a simple typo.
Senator Hassan’s adjusted vote total for Coos County is 6,059 while Republican candidate Donald Bolduc received a total of 6,491 votes. Hassan remains the winner of the US Senate race.
###
