In the small Nevada town of Gerlach, a local election was decided by a game of chance after the vote ended in a tie. Many U.S. states, including Nevada, have laws specifying how to handle ties in local elections. In some cases, random selection methods such as a card draw, coin flip or drawing straws are explicitly allowed.
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Carl Copek and Seth Schrenzel, longtime friends, ran for election to the Gerlach General Improvement District (GGID) Board of Directors. There were four seats up for election on the GGID Board, ABC News reported, and the top three candidates with the most votes would each get a full four-year term, which would last until 2028.
Copek and Schrenzel each received 67 votes out of 335 total votes cast among five candidates, tying for third place. A tiebreaker was required to determine which candidate would take the third-place seat with a full term and who would finish fourth with a shorter term.
Card draw determines winner
The tiebreaker was held in person at the Washoe County Commission Chambers, where the winner would be determined “by lot,” meaning by random chance rather than another vote. Before drawing cards, the candidates flipped a coin to see who would pick first.
Schrenzel won the coin toss and chose his card first. He drew the seven of diamonds, while Copek drew the five of clubs.
Outcome and reaction
Schrenzel won the tiebreaker, earning third place and the full four-year term. Copek took fourth place, serving a shorter two-year term and is preparing to run again in 2026.
“I am announcing today my bid for re-election,” Copek said at the press conference after the card draw event, as reported by KOLO News.
