By EMILY SPARACINO / Staff Writer

Incumbent State Rep. Dickie Drake (R-Leeds) defeated former Shelby County Commissioner Ted Crockett in the Republican Primary for House District 45, which comprises parts of Shelby and Jefferson counties.

Confusion surfaced about the candidates’ vote totals as results trickled in on the evening of June 5. In Shelby County, Crockett led Drake with 2,022 votes, or 54 percent, to Drake’s 1,738 votes, or 46 percent, with all but the provisional ballots counted; however, in Jefferson County, Drake came out on top with 1,601 votes to Crockett’s 609 votes. According to unofficial election results posted on the Alabama Secretary of State’s website June 6, Drake received 3,339 total votes (55.9 percent), and Crockett received 2,631 votes (44.1 percent).

“This morning, I was made aware of media stories that incorrectly reported the result of yesterday’s election,” Drake wrote in a press release June 6. “My campaign team has confirmed the results with both the Jefferson and Shelby county courthouses. They confirmed the votes totals as we understood them to be last night.”

Drake also thanked his family and friends “that helped to get my message out as well as my whole campaign team, including Greystone Public Affairs and our grassroots coordinator Grace Friedman.”

“I’m very thankful for the trust that the voters of Jefferson and Shelby counties showed in me last night,” he wrote. “I look forward to continuing to serve the people of our district. We have real challenges facing our state. I intended to push for real, conservative solutions to these issues. I’m also looking forward to serving as chairman of the Alabama House Military and Veterans Affairs Committee and making sure that our state does what we can to honor the commitments we have made to the men and women who have fought to protect our freedoms.”

As of the afternoon of June 6, Crockett could not be reached for comment.

Drake will run against Democratic candidate Jenn Gray in the General Election in November.