Fernandez Needs To Concede 2020 Election
Commissioner Frank X. Balles Calls on Her to Concede and Withdraw

ATLANTIC COUNTY, NJ — Celeste Fernandez lost her bid to unseat Commissioner John Risley on
November 3, 2020. After two recounts clearly showing her loss, she continues her unrealistic bid in a push for a third recount at a cost of over $100,000.

“Ms. Fernandez has received the nomination of her party for the 2021 election”, Balles said. “It is time for her to stop wasting the courts time and concede to Commissioner Risley and withdraw her motion with the Court of Appeals.”

If she is so sure she won that election, why announce a different campaign for County Commissioner this year?

In a letter to the editor in the Atlantic City Press published earlier this week, Atlantic County Commissioner John Risley agreed writing, “This recount did not change the vote in any significant way. Judge Mendez, overseeing the process, certified that the recount was conducted fairly.

But this was not enough for my opponent, Celeste Fernandez. She insisted on a second recount, using a larger sample of the votes. This was conducted, and the result again certified by Judge Mendez.

These two recounts, where a total of 8,600 votes were re-examined, resulted in Fernandez gaining a single vote.

That’s right, one vote. This at a cost of $20,000, of which Fernandez was required to pay only a small fraction.

Guess who picked up the rest. The taxpayers.

Now Fernandez is at it again. She has filed with the Court of Appeals to overturn Judge Mendez’s decisions and require a recount of all of the more than 132,000 ballots cast. She and the Democrats have not offered to pay for this (third) recount, which would leave taxpayers with another bill of over $100,000. Simply outrageous.”

“Celeste Fernandez can’t have this both ways — she needs to either immediately withdraw her challenge to the election last year or drop out of the 2021 campaign,” said Atlantic County Republican Chairman Keith Davis.