Proponents of a racino at Scarborough Downs on Monday inspected the ballots from the hotly contested Nov. 4 election and have until Nov. 24 to request a recount.

Downs attorney Edward MacColl and racino project developer Gene Beaudoin spent Monday afternoon inspecting the ballots after Scarborough resident Karen Vachon last week submitted a 100-signature petition requesting the inspection, said Scarborough Town Clerk Tody Justice.

Residents can now submit a 100-signature petition to request a recount if MacColl and Beaudoin suggest it, Justice said.

Phone calls to MacColl, Beaudoin and the Downs were not returned by The Current’s deadline, and Justice said it is not known if the parties will ask residents to request a recall.

The proposal to develop 535 acres owned by the track lost by just 239 votes, 5,565-5,804, in an election that drew a record number to the polls. The vote had a cliffhanger ending: Because a ballot machine malfunctioned, results were not available until the day after Election Day.

“I wasn’t surprised that the inspection was requested,” said Justice, who as town clerk supervised the ballot inspection.

Despite the narrow margin, the Nov. 4 vote marked the second defeat for slot machines in Scarborough. The loss has fueled speculation that the harness-racing track’s owner might look to relocate.

MacColl and Downs officials have been tight-lipped about what the Downs’ future holds.

“We are weighing our options,” MacColl said in a telephone interview last week. “That’s all I can say at this point, but they’re not ruling anything out.”

Downs officials had proposed adding slots to the track as part of a $200 million commercial and residential development that would give the town a center and $8 million in annual revenues.

Pitched by Beaudoin, the Connecticut developer who was instrumental in bringing a Cabela’s outdoor sporting goods store to town, the proposal had the backing of Penn National Gaming Inc., which spent more than $60,000 on a campaign in support of the project.

After the vote, however, Beaudoin was unequivocal. “It’s not dead in the water, it’s dead,” he said.

A law passed by statewide referendum in 2003 allows slot machines at existing harness-racing tracks with local approval, leading to Hollywood Slots at the state’s other harness-racing track in Bangor. Scarborough Downs, however, has found it much more difficult to win approval in southern Maine. Saco and Westbrook have also rejected proposals to allow slot machines associated with the Downs.

Voters exiting the polls Nov. 4 cited arguments made throughout the campaign on both sides of the issue. Proponents pointed to tax revenues a slots parlor could bring to town for capital improvements or tax relief. Opponents feared social costs such as possible surges in crime and traffic associated with larger-scale gambling.

Another touted benefit was a racino’s ability to boost the struggling southern Maine harness-racing business, which has been subsidized at the Downs by racetrack owner Sharon Terry and her daughter, Denise Terry.