Tight Statewide Races Keep Candidates on Edge

Democrat Doug Berger says he is optimistic, but he wishes he had convinced another couple-of-thousand people to vote for him to be the next Labor Commissioner.

"It's nerve-wracking," he says. "It's anxiety-producing, but we are cautiously optimistic."

Tuesday night was a nail-biter for Berger and his Republican opponent Cherie Berry.

"I feel a little nervous right now," Berry says. "It's going back and forth for a couple of hours. I'd like to see the votes counted and know what the results are going to be."

Election officials say they may have to wait a little longer.

"Currently, all county boards of election are auditing their records and votes cast at polling places," says Gary Bartlett with theState Board of Elections. "They're also researching provisional ballots to ensure what should be counted and what should not."

In the meantime, Berger is crunching his own numbers. He thinks a mistake could have cost him the election.

"We will try to get the data from the 100 counties and compare my race with the rest of the Democratic ticket and see if we see any unusual numbers in my race relative to anyone else," he says.

The race between John Tyson and Jim Fuller for the Court of Appeals is also likely to go to a recount. The apparent loser has to ask for a recount by November 15.