Elections Ontario has declared PC incumbent Gila Martow winner of the Thornhill riding after a data entry error was discovered during the official tabulation Friday.

Unofficial results on the Elections Ontario website had originally named Liberal challenger Sandra Yeung Racco as the Thornhill winner by a slim 85-vote margin. Martow says that while she is thrilled to return to Queen’s Park, the situation “is just so uncomfortable for everybody.”

“I can’t imagine what’s worse: being told you’ve won and celebrating and then being told you’ve lost, versus thinking you’ve lost for 24 hours,” Martow told the Star. “I was already making a list of everything I’d have to bring home from Queen’s Park.”

Peter Berry, media spokesperson for Elections Ontario, says a “rare data entry error” was discovered during the official tabulation.

“It’s very rare for the official tabulation to change the outcome of the election,” Berry told the Star. “The result-gathering process on election night is extremely fast paced, and this is simply a data entry error, not a ballot counting error.”

When all 280 polls reported on election night, Yeung Racco led Martow 21,837 to 21,752.

After the official tabulation, Elections Ontario reported that Martow actually led Yeung Racco 21,868 to 21,783 — a margin of 85 votes.

Ontario Elections told Martow this reversal is a very unusual situation, she says, and likely a first for Ontario.

“I was told they had no recollection of ever having to reverse a decision based on the tally, in this way,” said Martow. “It’s been a roller-coaster emotionally.”

Yeung Racco’s team said Saturday afternoon that they would now seek a judicial recount, expressing alarm at data inaccuracies in 13 polls.

“Of 50,090 votes cast, the difference is less than 0.2 per cent of all votes cast. When the results are as close as they were, it is imperative to ensure that every vote was counted properly,” said Yeung Racco. “The voters of Thornhill deserve to know that their votes counted and their will is reflected in the result.”

An incumbent who was narrowly defeated received news of the Thornhill reversal with interest. Michael Prue, longtime NDP MPP for Beaches-East York, lost his seat by 431 votes to Liberal candidate Arthur Potts, and Prue said Saturday he’s eager to know the results of his own official tabulation.

“Mathematical errors are made all the time,” he told the Star Saturday afternoon. “If they phone me up and say I won, I’ll dance!”

Prue is not sure when he will learn the official results, but says if it closes the gap enough he will seriously consider a recount.

Official tabulation takes place when the returning officer reviews the required reports from all of the election officials who have counted ballots. The process allows Elections Ontario to maintain the integrity of the counting process, says Berry.

Candidates and designated representatives are always invited to the official tabulation to watch the process. During Friday’s tabulation in Thornhill, both Liberal and PC representatives were present.

The reports are reviewed for accuracy, Berry adds.

“In this case it was discovered while reviewing the report figures that there was a transposition data entry error,” he said.

Haley Gotfrid, campaign manager for Martow, was at the official tabulation on Friday. It was just a “weird coincidence” that Yeung Racco was reported to have won by 85 votes on election night, and that Martow has now won by the same margin, she told the Star.

“There were a couple of polls that had some major changes made to them,” she said. “Frankly, it’s just a weird coincidence.”

Martow was an optometrist before winning a byelection in the riding earlier this year. After careers in music and business, Yeung Racco has spent the last decade as a Vaughan city councillor.

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The Thornhill win gives the Tories a total of five GTA MPPs in an election filled with setbacks for the party: Martow, Sylvia Jones in Dufferin-Caledon, Ted Arnott in Wellington-Halton Hills, Christine Elliott in Whitby-Oshawa and Julia Munro in York-Simcoe. The parties’ seat totals, for now, are 58 Liberals, 28 PCs and 21 NDP.

Martow says to make up for missing out on an election night celebration, she’s throwing a pizza party at her home Saturday afternoon for her team.

“The key message here is that every single vote counts,” Martow said. “It’s staggering how close we were.”