NEW HANOVER COUNTY — The New Hanover County Board of Elections completed the election canvass around 2 p.m. on Friday, with one New Hanover County candidate’s Election Day lead narrowing but still proclaiming him the victor.
Friday’s results show Democratic candidate Tim Merrick has beaten Dane Scalise, his Republican challenger and sitting county commissioner, for the District 20 seat in the North Carolina House of Representatives. The seat is being vacated by Republican Ted Davis, first elected in 2012.
Merrick was shown to have won the seat by 101 votes on Election Day. After provisional ballots were counted earlier this week, the gap was reduced to 81.
At the canvass meeting, Merrick’s lead was closed by another four votes, though the final tally was 22,156 votes to Scalise’s 22,079.
“I’m pleased that the board of elections was as thorough as they were, ensuring every vote was counted,” Merrick said. “Of course, I’m happy and honored to have been chosen by a majority of voters.”
Scalise retains the ability to request a recount; state law allows for candidates to request one if the gap between them and the opponent is 1% or less of the total votes cast in the race.
Port City Daily asked Scalise if he would file for a recount; he said he did not have a comment.
Scalise has until 5 p.m. on Monday, Nov. 16, to ask for a recount. At the meeting, BOE Director Eric Navagh confirmed he had not received a recount request as of Friday afternoon. If one is received, the board has three business days to conduct it.
Should Scalise not file for a recount or Merrick’s win is upheld should one be conducted, Scalise would retain his seat on the New Hanover County Board of Commissioners. His current term does not end until December 2028.
“I congratulate Dane for a race well run and I call on everyone to put party politics behind us, to roll up our sleeves to make New Hanover County the best it can be for our students, our teachers, our law enforcement, small businesses and those who call this great place home,” Merrick wrote in a statement to Port City Daily.
As for the congressional race with incumbent Republican David Rouzer and Democrat Kim Hardy, the State Board of Elections, as of 3:30 p.m., has Rouzer in the lead with 2,309 votes separating the two.
Port City Daily reached out to Hardy’s team Friday to ask if the candidate is considering a recount; a senior advisor said Hardy is “going to meet with folks observing the final canvass and will make a decision later today.”
Navagh, in his first election since being hired as director in July 2025, reported Friday an overall smooth midterm election in the county, despite some surprises. He noted his team saw a “staggering” amount of curbside voters this year.
The director also reported his team reconciled any differences in ballots cast with voter history at each early voting site. On Election Day, only one difference was noted as occurring, though Navagh explained the mix-up happened when twins with similar names came to vote. He noted one twin signed the wrong voter authorization form, but this was rectified.
Overall, midterm voter turnout in the county was 54.41%, up 52.41% in 2022’s midterm election.
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