The DuPage County Election Commission will recount the votes for the Fox River & Countryside Fire/Rescue District referendum seeking an increase in the property tax extension.

According to a news release sent today (Wednesday, April 18, 2018), the DuPage Election Commission will conduct a discovery recount of certain precinct results from the March 20, 2018, General Primary Election at 9 a.m. Wednesday, April 25, in the office of the DuPage County Election Commission Production Facility, 2580 Diehl Road, Aurora.

On election night, it appeared that the referendum failed by 32 votes out of 4,022 ballots cast.

Kane County’s canvassed vote totals show 1,868 “yes” votes and 1,921 “no” votes — the same numbers reported on election night.

DuPage County’s unofficial totals were 127 “yes” and 106 “no” on election night, resulting in totals of 1,995 “yes” and 2,027 “no” votes.

The referendum language is as follows:

“Shall the extension limitation under the Property Tax Extension Limitation Law for the Fox River & Countryside Fire/Rescue District, Kane and DuPage Counties, Illinois, be increased from the lesser of 5% or the percentage increase in the Consumer Price Index over the prior levy year to 60% per year for the 2018 levy year?”

The DuPage County Election Commission experienced an issue following the close of polls on election night that delayed the reporting of results. Officials said the problem involved an outside vendor’s printing of an “Ender Card” form which did not conform with the printing bid specifications.

DuPage officials said on April 4 that the issue “did not affect any voter’s ability to cast a ballot at the polls, nor did it affect the count of ballots processed at the polling place, the memory cards, or the integrity of the process.”

Media reports said the Fox River & Countryside Fire District would have to cut three firefighters as a result of the failed referendum.