Katie MacDonald was joking the night before Tuesday's election when she
told her husband - a candidate for city council in the small town of
Walton, Kentucky - that if he didn't wake her up to vote the next day,
the race would end up as a tie.
He should have taken her more seriously.
Katie, who works night shifts at a hospital as a nurse assistant while
finishing up training as a nurse, didn't wake up in time to vote. Now
her husband, Robert, is involved in a 669 to 669 vote tie with his
opponent Olivia Ballou.
"Well, obviously she was upset about it," Robert MacDonald told ABC
News. "She feels bad, but it was me who was in charge of waking her up
and making sure she got out to vote. I've tried to be nice to her today.
It's her birthday."
Robert MacDonald, 27, intends to request a re-canvassing, a simple
re-tally of the vote, which will take place next Thursday. If the result
is the same, the winner will be determined by coin toss.
MacDonald said this incident has highlighted an issue with Kentucky's
voting laws - which allows for absentee voting but not early voting like
their neighbor, Ohio.
"I'm going to start writing our legislators about early voting. We need early voting in Kentucky," MacDonald said.
Ballou, who had lost her phone the day before the election, said she
wasn't made aware of the tie until she checked her voicemail, which was
filled with eager reporters trying to scoop the story of the Boone
County stalemate.
"I'm feeling on edge," Ballou said. "I know why I want to join city
council and I know I'd be great at it. I sincerely feel like we'd both
be good at the job."
Ballou is finishing up her masters in school counseling at Northern
Kentucky University. She said she wanted to set an example for her
students, and will continue to be involved in local politics.
As for her opponent, he too said he would still stay involved in local
government, but next election, he would make sure to wake up his wife