New London — The city will conduct a recount Friday of all of the ballots cast in Tuesday’s election because of two- and three-vote margins separating winning and losing candidates for the city council and the school board.  

Incumbent city council candidate Efrain Dominguez defeated incumbent Republican Martin Olsen by a three-vote margin: 1,558 to 1,555.

Olsen’s apparent loss led to a Democratic sweep on the council. Olsen was the lone non-Democrat on the council before Tuesday's election.

Dominguez, who would enter his second term on the council if the vote count holds up, said Wednesday that the close call was the reason he preaches to his constituents that "every vote counts."

"Whether it's by 2,3 or 4 votes — what counts is I have a seat and can be a part of moving New London forward," Dominguez said.

Incumbent Board of Education member Robert Funk defeated incumbent Aracelis Vazquez-Haye by two votes on Tuesday, according to Republican Registrar of Voters Rob Pero.

Unofficial results on Tuesday showed Funk winning by three votes but that number was revised later in the night after a recount of ballots cast during the Election Day registrations.

Pero said 36 people registered and voted Tuesday at city hall.

The latest count shows Funk with 1,537 votes to Vazquez-Haye’s 1,535 votes. Both candidates are Democrats.

K. Robert Lewis, the master moderator for this year’s election, said he is following state guidelines for the recount.

According to state law, Lewis said the automatic recount, or recanvass, is triggered when the candidates are separated by the equivalent of less than one-half of 1 percent of the total number of votes cast.

In the case of Tuesday’s election, the trigger would have been 17 votes, Lewis said. State law also requires that the recount take place within five days of the election.

The recount is scheduled to start at 2 p.m. at City Hall where ballots will be fed through certified tabulators not used during the election. A host of election personnel will be on hand from both parties.

All four of the candidates and heads of all of the party committees are expected to be notified prior to the recount. The recount is open to the public.

g.smith@theday.com

Twitter: @SmittyDay