LOUISIANA - The Louisiana Supreme Court reaffirmed Thursday that a sheriff's election won by one vote in Caddo Parish must be redone.

Henry Whitehorn, the Democrat who won the sheriff runoff, won by one vote initially, but the courts determined that there was at least one voting discrepancy, and the justices specifically referenced absentee ballots lacking signatures by voters and witnesses that were counted.

With that in mind, the Supreme Court let the ruling of the appeals court stand; the election must be thrown out and repeated.

Justice Scott Chrichton wrote in his concurrent statement that "a new election will ensure confidence in the final outcome."

In a dissent, Justice John Weimer noted that the Republican candidate, John Nickelson, did not appeal on the day of election, which would be standard procedure.

"Mr. Nickelson’s failure to follow the mandated procedure of the Election Code to raise concerns regarding double voting during the election results in a waiver of his challenge," Weimer said. "Moreover, even if Mr. Nickelson’s challenge to these votes is deemed timely, he did not meet the burden of proof required by the Election Code to nullify an election."