St. Louis' Ward 9 Election Could Be Headed for a Coin Flip

Political newcomer Michael Browning emerged victorious in yesterday's Ward 9 aldermanic primary, but it's unclear who his opponent will be in the general election next month.

Almost half of voters in Ward 9, which centers on the Central West End and Forest Park Southeast, cast a ballot for Browning, who works as a grant writer for Washington University.

But with the passage of Proposition D in 2020, voters can pick as many candidates as they want in the primary, and the top two vote-getters move on to the general election.

However, in the case of Ward 9, as of Wednesday morning, it's not clear who the second-place finisher is.

That's because two incumbent aldermen, Mike Gras and Tina "Sweet-T" Pihl, both received 868 votes.

Pihl is currently the Ward 17 alderwoman and Gras represents Ward 28. The two incumbents ran in a three-way race against Browning in the first election under the city's new ward reduction plan, which cut the number of wards from 28 to 14 and left numerous incumbents going head to head throughout the city.

The current vote tally does not include military ballots or ballots cast provisionally.

"We're on a wait and see on the provisional and military ballots," says Keisha Carter, a spokesperson for the Pihl campaign.

If there are no military or provisional ballots in the ward, or if an equal number come in for both candidates, Carter says the two candidates will "pull straws, in a sense."

A statue governing St Louis elections states, "In case of a tie vote, the candidates having such equal number of votes shall immediately determine by lot in the presence of the election commissioners."

"This is an unusual circumstance. It's going to be an interesting ride," says Carter. "We're just glad to still be part of the process."

All three candidates billed themselves as progressives, though they were not without their differences. Developers have complained that Pihl has been slow to work with them on projects in her ward. Gras has been outspoken in recent weeks in his calls for Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner to resign. Browning took flack in January when he suggested that police should not be armed when conducting traffic stops.

Last night, the only clear winner, Browning, released a statement on Twitter thanking his wife and supporters. "I am grateful for the people who have supported me: My wife, my team, and the voters who have placed their trust in me," he wrote. "Thank you all, and I'm ready to keep working for our ward and our city. We'll see you on the doors and on April 4."

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