With all the votes tallied, F.L. &uot;Hank&uot; Smith widened his lead slightly over incumbent Mayor Larry L. &uot;Butch&uot; Brown for the Democratic nomination for Natchez mayor.

In a city hall conference room whose walls are lined with pictures of past mayors, the Democratic Executive Committee worked all day Wednesday to certify the results of Tuesday’s runoff.

In the end, Smith had 3,294 votes to Brown’s 3,041 — a difference of 253 votes. Tuesday night, before the committee counted paper and affidavit ballots, Smith had a 224 vote lead.

But Brown said Wednesday he is still considering protesting two of the six boxes — Wards 4 and 5 — because of problems reported at those polling places Tuesday. He said he won’t make a decision until he analyzes the numbers.

Smith said he did not have a comment about the problems reported but said he understands it is Brown’s right to contest if he chooses.

Brown arrived at work Wednesday morning to find a sign taped to the door of city hall reading &uot;Are you awake yet?&uot; Brown said he thinks it refers to a mailout he sent to voters after the first primary that said he’d had a wake-up call.

&uot;It was a tacky thing,&uot; Brown said. &uot;I don’t think it was from Hank. It was obviously from one of his supporters.&uot;

Brown, who has served two terms as mayor, said he has not contested an election before.

&uot;And I don’t know that I will now,&uot; he said.

At the Ward 4 polling place, the United Steelworkers of America union hall, signs supporting Smith were tacked to the wall for the first two hours of voting Tuesday, said poll watcher Ed Godfrey.

Godfrey said the chalkboard at the union hall also read, &uot;Bye-bye, Butch. This election cannot be bought.&uot;

And at Ward 5’s polling place, the National Guard Armory on Liberty Road, Brown said a bailiff was working, Charles Prater, who had earlier signed a ticket encouraging people to vote for Smith.

Democratic committee member Jacqulyn B. Smith — who is no relation to the mayoral candidate — said Tuesday that the bailiff was removed from his duties after the committee found out about the signature.

Under state law, signs promoting candidates are not allowed within 150 feet of a polling place. And poll workers are expected to stay publicly impartial.

The process for contesting an election begins on the local level.

&uot;The big picture is that the aggrieved candidate would file a complaint with the municipal Democratic executive committee,&uot; said Reese Partridge, an attorney with the Mississippi Secretary of State’s Office.

A candidate has 20 days from the date of the election to file a complaint.

The Democratic committee has the right to decide whether to throw out a box and/or hold a new election for that precinct, said Partridge, but the statute authorizing it is limited.

&uot;The statute lays out conditions that have to be met before they can throw out a box,&uot; Partridge said. &uot;It says there must be a failure in the material to such an extent that it’s impossible to arrive at the will of the voters.&uot;

In other words, the committee must determine that the alleged election misconduct affected the outcome of the election.

The committee would then hold a hearing on the allegations of election misconduct, Partridge said.

&uot;They have the authority to declare a ‘true result’ as to whether the election will stand,&uot; he said.

If Brown protests the results, there is a chance the Democratic committee could rule, after a hearing, to throw contested boxes out.

If both of the boxes for Wards 4 and 5 were thrown out, according to certified numbers, the vote would be even closer, but Brown would have the advantage by just 17 votes. If just one or the other was thrown out, Smith would still lead.

But the Democratic committee could also decide to throw out those boxes and hold another election in those wards, Partridge said.

If either candidate does not agree with the Democratic executive committee’s decision, he can appeal to circuit court.

The runoff election isn’t even the last stop for the Democratic nominee. Smith, the likely winner, faces independent Robert F. Costa in the June 6 general election.

Costa said Wednesday he has no intention of dropping out of the race, although he said he is glad Smith appears to be the winner.

&uot;I didn’t get in (this race) just to get out,&uot; he said. &uot;I’m looking froward to a race with Mr. Smith.&uot;

Costa, who was the first mayoral candidate to qualify officially, said he is not surprised by the close results. &uot;I&160;said it would be too close to call,&uot; he said.

Smith said he is anxious to put the runoff behind him and move on to the next election. &uot;I haven’t forgotten I’ve still got another race,&uot; he said.

Smith said part of his platform regarding the convention center has been misunderstood. &uot;I have not suggested permanently halting construction of the convention center,&uot; he said.

But Smith said if it’s possible to save taxpayers some money, he would like to see the city explore other options, including putting the convention center at the same site as the Natchez Visitor Reception Center. &uot;If it can’t be done, then it can’t be done,&uot; he said.

Smith said he has also heard rumors about what department heads he might try to have removed if elected.

&uot;That’s not anything I’ve thought about,&uot; he said. &uot;I’ve heard the rumor that the entire police department was going to be fired, that the entire fire department was going to be fired, that the entire water works department was going to be fired.

&uot;This is the first time I’ve responded to those rumors,&uot; he said. &uot;I don’t even know that I could do it without the board of aldermen’s approval.&uot;