Simone Bell Wins District 58 Race

UPDATED: With 24 of 24 precincts reporting, Simone Bell has 55.69 percent of the votes cast vs. Ralph Long's 44.31 percent.

Georgia House District 58 is shaping up to be the race to watch.

The backwards L-shaped district stretches from Virginia-Highland down to Fort McPherson in the southwest part of the city.

is the incumbent running for re-election in the district against Ralph Long.

Long, who was elected to represent District 61, found himself redistricted out of his seat when the city was realigned.

The race has been hotly contested with both candidates making the rounds at different community meetings and neighborhood gatherings in East Atlanta, Virginia-Highland, Old Fourth Ward and Reynoldstown.

There's added wrinkle for both because the district realignments caused a voting problem Tuesday for voters in Reynoldstown.

The neighborhood is now split between District 58 and District 59, which is represented by Margaret Kaiser.

Some Reynoldstown voters weren't given the right ballots or were told they had to vote using ballots that were based on the old district borders.

Fulton County elections officials said they resolved the issue and that it only affected 300 voters on 10 streets in District 58 and District 59.

For those who already voted but on the wrong district ballot, it's unclear what will happen particularly if the votes between Long and Bell are close.

Elections officials said the department would tackle what to do with those 300 votes on Wednesday.

If the votes come in with less than one percent difference betweent he two candidates, the votes will automatically be recounted, Fulton County spokeswoman Alicia Phillips told Patch.

If the margin is wider than one percent, either candidate can request a recount, but it will be up to the Department of Registration & Elections whether or not the request will be granted, she said.