Underhill got what she expected - a tight race

With 500 to 1,000 provisional ballots still to be counted in Craven County, unofficial final numbers give Rep. Alice Graham Underhill the N.C. House District 3 seat for a fourth term.

Underhill, a Democrat, had 411 more votes than her closest challenger, Republican Norman Sanderson. Libertarian Herb Sobel came in third.

"That is a small amount, but I don't recall the last time I saw provisional votes change an election by that many votes," Sanderson said Wednesday, conceding the race to Underhill.

"I am disappointed because so many people were involved and helped and worked so hard," he said. "But if Alice won the election, it is the people's choice, and we will abide by that and see what can be done next time."

The lead changed several times as election returns came in, but the final unofficial tally gave Underhill 49.1 percent of the vote to Sanderson's 47.8 percent. Sobel received 3 percent of the vote.

Underhill was bumped from a second term in 2002 by Republican Michael Gorman before being re-elected twice. She said winning District 3 would probably be a close race for most Democrats. She will take the win by any margin.

"It's a good win," said Underhill. "This is exactly what I expected. I appreciate the support I received from both counties. I plan to keep on and make sure the new people here get to know me and how I represent them."

The district covers Pamlico and Craven counties.

"I look forward to representing my district working with Bev Perdue as governor," Underhill said. "It is an important time for our state, and I look forward to a bright future for North Carolina."

Sobel said he got nearly a thousand votes and spent $207 to do it, about 16 cents a vote.

His 3 percent matched the Libertarian vote for others of that party running in North Carolina. He said that showing would "make other candidates have to sit up and listen to what the rest of us in a small minority are about. Our voices need to be heard."

"What happened in this election shows the Republican Party is a watch that has been run over; the hands are frozen in time; it no longer functions; the mainspring is broken and no watchmaker in the world is going to fix it," Sobel said. "My party represents liberty and freedom and an antidote to socialism."

Underhill got 15,382 votes in the final unofficial totals sent to the state, 11,701 in Craven and 3,681 in Pamlico.

Sanderson won the Craven County vote with 12,175 but trailed with 2,796 in Pamlico.

Sobel got an unofficial total of 939 votes, 815 in Craven County and 124 in Pamlico County.