Cathy Truitt announced Monday that she is pulling out of the race for the Wake County Board of Education, but the man she was to face in the Nov. 3 runoff cannot be declared a winner.

John Tedesco won 49 percent of the votes for the District 2 school board seat, while Truitt got only 24 percent. His failure to clear the 50 percent mark enabled Truitt to ask for a runoff, which she did the day after the election. Wake County Board of Elections officials say that request started wheels in motion that can't be stopped. Elections Board Director Cherie Poucher said the election will cost Wake County an estimated $30,000.

"Early voting started last Thursday," said Poucher. "And the ballots for the November election are already being printed."

According to Poucher, as of the end of the day Monday, Truitt had not notified the Board of Elections of her decision to withdraw. Even if she files the paperwork, her name will remain on the ballot.

Tedesco said he was frustrated to learn of Truitt's decision from the news media. He refuted Truitt's claim that she had tried to contact him and even invited him to the news conference.

"I have not received any contact from her campaign," said Tedesco. "In fact, I reached out last week to some of her campaign leaders and asked them to set up a meeting with me. I have yet to receive one."

Truitt said the likelihood of a win in the election was "improbable" and that if she did win, she did not want to be a "political lightning rod."

"Sometimes you realize that you can make an impact in other ways, without splitting a community," she said. "Without dividing neighbors and pitting communities one against the other."

Some Tedesco supporters suspect that Truitt's move was a last-ditch effort to prevent him from winning.

"This thing is not over yet, and what we saw today may be no more than a stunt that would make Machiavelli proud," said Joe Ciulla, one of the leaders of the Wake Schools Community Alliance.

Because Truitt's name is still on the ballot, it is possible Tedesco would not get the most votes in November. If that happens, Tedesco would not win the seat and the school board, which after the October election is evenly divided on the district's diversity policy, would have to appoint someone.

Tedesco said Truitt's concession reduces the sense of urgency in the school board election, so his charge between now and Nov. 3 is to get his supporters to the polls. Municipal elections in Fuquay-Varina, Holly Springs and Garner may boost voter turnout in District 2, which has more than 71,000 registered voters.