NEDERLAND — The townspeople of Nederland have spent the last week wondering who has actually won the position of Mayor, as the unofficial results of the April 7, 2026, election ended with a one-point margin, putting Billy Giblin ahead of Nichole Sterling 258 to 257, signaling the potential for a state-mandated recount.

State statutes specify that a recount is required if “the next highest number of votes cast in the election is less than or equal to one-half of one percent of the highest number of votes cast in the election.” However, Nederland Town Hall reported there were still signatures to be verified and an additional 31 ballots being mailed in, which were to be tallied and verified by Wednesday, April 15.  

As the Uniformed and Overseas Electors Absentee Voting Act rules that such mailed ballots are given a window of eight days after Election Day to be received by the elections office, the Town of Nederland decided to wait until after that window was closed to see if the margin of votes between Mayoral candidates would still necessitate a recount. 

If required, a recount would need to be conducted within 15 days of Election Day, which would be Wednesday, April 22, after the upcoming meeting of the Board of Trustees, scheduled on Tuesday, April 21. The newly elected Mayor and Trustees were scheduled to be sworn in at that meeting. 

Early morning after Election Day, just as the counts were posted and announced, Giblin stated that, though he knew that the Town’s election officials had done thorough work in counting and verifying the ballots, he did not immediately accept the one-vote victory as he expected a recount was inevitable.

Sterling, late afternoon after Election Day, expressed that she was awaiting notice from Town staff on whether a recount was going to be conducted. The two candidates spent much of the last week mired in anxious anticipation, wanting to know—just as much as the Nederland community wanted to know—which of them was going to be Mayor for the next two years. 

“We appreciate everyone's patience as we work through this historic process,” Sterling told The Mountain-Ear. “I still plan to serve this community, regardless of the outcome, so that already makes me a winner.”

“That is the adjective of the week, ‘interesting.’” Giblin laughed at the word used to describe the current situation. “It is interesting; it speaks volumes to the likelihood that the town is pretty divided on how they want to see things go. If there’s any clear mandate it’s that we have to make good use of both of our strengths.” 

Nichole Sterling feverishly working as Mayor Pro Tem to institute emergency procedures during the October 9 Lakeview Fire.

Photo by Christopher Kelley

Town Clerk Macy Caligaris and Town Manager Jonathan Cain were also asked for comment on this significant moment in Nederland’s history, but did not respond before publication. 

A new ballot count is expected to be posted at the Town of Nederland’s official physical posting locations on Thursday, April 16.

The results of a potential recount are to be posted by the following week. Please follow The Mountain-Ear online for the latest updates on this developing story.