Update: Villanueva requests recount

Race for treasurer separated by just four votes

Lorene Villanueva asked for a manual recount of the Brewster County Treasurer’s race and paid an $800 deposit, Democratic Chairwoman Mary Bell Lockhart announced Monday.

Villanueva has not responded to a request for comment.

Incumbent Julie Morton was declared the winner by just four votes after the mail-in and provisional ballots were counted, and the election was canvassed March 10.

The deposit is used to cover expenses related to the recount, which has been scheduled for Friday in the elections office. If the result is reversed and Villanueva is declared the winner, she will receive a full refund. If not, any unused funds will be returned to Villanueva, said Lockhart, who believes that just four people will be needed and that they can finish in one day.

There is not a Republican challenger in the November general election.