The already narrow gap between votes for Tom Derzypolski and Talethia Edwards is getting even tighter.<\/p>\n
A review process was underway Aug. 21. The two candidates are holding their breath, waiting to hear who will become the second candidate to advance to the runoff election in November for Tallahassee City Commission Seat 3.<\/p>\n
According to unofficial results on the Leon County Supervisor of Elections Office’s website, Derzypolski is now only 14 votes ahead of Edwards, as opposed to his original 24-vote lead from election night.<\/p>\n
“This is why we do recounts,” Leon County Supervisor of Elections Mark Earley said. “It could potentially change, and maybe it won’t.”<\/p>\n
On Aug. 18, P.J. Perez secured his spot as the top vote-getter with 29.05% of the votes, while Derzypolski and Edwards were neck-and-neck with Derzypolski just barely ending with 26.33% and Edwards ending with 26.27%.<\/p>\n
Canvassing board evaluates ballots in City commission seat 3 race<\/p>\n
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Leon County Supervisor of Elections Mark Earley holds up a ballot with multiple candidates in the same races selected for the public to see during a canvassing board meeting Friday, Aug. 21, 2026. (Alicia Devine\/Tallahassee Democrat)<\/p>\n
The extremely close margin triggered a recount, and the local elections office has been working to finalize the results.<\/p>\n
Vote-by-mail ballots, ballots cast by voters whose eligibility couldn’t be immediately verified and poorly marked ballots were reviewed Friday, Aug. 21 \u2014 a review process that decreased the margin by 10 votes.<\/p>\n
Now, the unofficial results on the website reflect the new results, showing Perez received 29.06% (11,632 votes), Derzypolski got 26.31% (10,532) and Edwards received 26.27% (10,518).<\/p>\n
Earley said this kicks the race into a recount that will begin Aug. 22. Ballots will be fed back into a machine to be retabulated, and any ballots the machine cannot read will be set aside and reviewed in a manual recount.<\/p>\n
It’s the Leon County Canvassing Board’s duty to ensure all voter intent is accounted for on the ballots that are more ambiguous, such as when voters circled a bubble or marked an X on a bubble instead of filling it in.<\/p>\n
The board’s members are Earley, Leon County Judge Nina Ashenafi-Richardson and Leon County Commissioner Nick Maddox.<\/p>\n
“That’s why we do machine plus manual recount when it’s this close,” Earley said.<\/p>\n
It’s possible the board could determine the second unofficial results Aug. 22, Earley said, which would either confirm the results calculated on Friday or change them once again.<\/p>\n
Derzypolski said it feels good to still be ahead, but he’s still “just as uneasy as always” waiting for the final results.<\/p>\n
“I don’t know where we will land, but it’s such a great, transparent experience,” Derzypolski said. “People in Tallahassee, in Leon County, should have 100% confidence in the outcome.”<\/p>\n
Edwards also praised the elections office for the diligent work they’ve done to ensure votes are properly counted.<\/p>\n
“Watching this process as a candidate is a nail biter, but I am keeping faith in God that we ran a good race, the people have voted, we’re now waiting on the recount,” Edwards said. “I’m still holding faith that we will pull out and go to the general.”<\/p>\n
This is a developing news story; check back later for any updates.<\/p>\n
Elena Barrera can be reached at ebarrera@tallahassee.com<\/a>. Follow her on X: @elenabarreraaa<\/a>.<\/p>\n This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Tallahassee commission race tightens after initial ballot review<\/a><\/p>\n