MEMPHIS, Tenn. — The Germantown mayor’s race is still too close to call today. It could be weeks before we know who the official winner is.
After hours of watching the ballots get counted on election night, Germantown Mayor Mike Palazzolo won by less than a percent with 127 more votes.
“When you win by one point, in overtime or by a close margin, there’s a real sense of thrill and relief,” Palazzolo said.
His opponent, current Alderman John Barzizza, trailed behind closely. “I have been a proponent for the people of our city since I got elected alderman,” he said.
With provisional and absentee ballots still needing to be counted, Barzizza feels the race is too close to call. The election commission will know how many there are by next week, so that could determine if there’s enough to change the winner.
Mayor Palazzolo says he’s still celebrating a win as they wait for official numbers.
Community members say this was one of the most heated mayoral races they’ve seen in Germantown.
Palazzolo says it was similar in the 70’s when the city was growing from a sleepy farm town. “We have a small town feel, small town charm, but big city amenities.”
He thinks the city’s growth rate is partially what caused voters to be split. However, he also thinks unrealistic information about taxes and transparency were thrown out during campaigning.
“I think those are oftentimes used to again try to galvanize people to vote a certain way. And I think that’s kind of what you saw in this local election,” Palazzolo said.
He plans to re-evaluate his campaign and continue to speak with constituents to see what’s best for Germantown.
“At the end of the day, leading is about trying to bring a whole community forward on a vision and direction that the actual people put together.”
The election commission says it could be until around Thanksgiving when we get the final count with provisional votes.