KNOXVILLE, Tenn — It was a tight race between two Democrats fighting to unseat the incumbent in the Tennessee House District 15, and an even tighter finish.
Sam McKenzie and Matthew Park were virtually neck and neck all night long, and it appears that McKenzie narrowly defeated Park by just 23 votes.
The unofficial results show McKenzie with 2,023 votes to Park's 2,000 votes. There are just 21 provisional ballots in District 15 according to Chris Davis with the Knox County Election Commission, making McKenzie the apparent winner.
This indicates McKenzie has enough votes to win the race, but the final results may depend on a potential recount.
Park said on Twitter he would be announcing something about the race later Friday night on Facebook.
Incumbent Rick Staples finished third with 1,094 votes.
No Republican candidates qualified for the primary.
Original story
Three Democrats are vying in the Aug. 6 election for a seat in the State House 15th District, which covers East Knoxville and part of South Knoxville.
Democrat Rick Staples is fighting to retain his seat and faces two opponents, former Knox County Commissioner Sam McKenzie and Matthew Park.
No Republican candidates qualified for the primary.
State election finance officials began looking earlier this year into Staples' use of campaign money for personal expenses including meals and a Ford vehicle warranty. Staples pledged in June to pay back some $11,000 in questionable expenditures.
Second quarter spending reports filed with the state in early July show Staples had spent about $4,800 compared with $5,400 for McKenzie and and $16,000 for Park.
The latest, pre-primary reports filed in late July and early August show Staples spent an additional $17,250 while McKenzie spent $2,900 and Park spent $6,485.