A St. Louis circuit judge on Friday tossed out the results of the Aug. 2 Democratic primary battle between state representative candidates Penny Hubbard and Bruce Franks and ordered a new election.
Circuit Judge Rex Burlison sided with Franks, saying absentee ballots were cast improperly and could have affected the outcome of the race. A new election is set for Sept. 16.
The judge’s 22 page opinion makes it clear that there’s no evidence a voter acted fraudulently, but local election officials did not follow state law and the difference between the candidates was smaller than the number of questionable absentee ballots.