Georgia will conduct by-hand recount of presidential race, election official says
Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger said Wednesday that election workers will conduct a by-hand recount of the state’s presidential race as part of its audit process.
President-elect Joe Biden currently leads Donald Trump by more than 14,000 votes as 97 of Georgia’s 159 counties have reported finalized tallies. Under Georgia law, the secretary of state’s office must conduct a risk-limiting audit.
The audit process requires a by-hand inspection of random samples of official ballots and uses statistical sampling techniques to confirm the results of the election. The audit will serve as a full recount in this situation because of the large number of ballots cast and the narrow margin between the two candidates.
Election officials will be recounting the paper ballots printed from Georgia’s new electronic voting machines. The Trump campaign previously requested a by-hand recount, but that did not influence the decision to audit the presidential race, Raffensperger said. He said his office was following established election processes.
“This will help build confidence. It will be a recount and recanvass all at once,” Raffensperger said of the audit. “It will be a heavy lift, but we will work with the counties to get this done in time for our state certification.”
The Trump campaign could still request a recount following the audit and certification of Georgia’s election results if Biden’s unofficial victory is less than half a percent. That recount would be done electronically, Raffensperger said.
At this time, it appears counties will cover the cost of the audit and any hiring of additional workers. However, Raffensperger said the state legislature could provide additional funding.
Georgia Republicans have attacked Raffensperger and his office over the handling of the election. U.S. Sens. David Perdue and Kelly Loeffler called for Raffensperger, who is also a Republican, to resign from his post. They allege Raffensperger failed to deliver an “honest and transparent” election but did not provide specific evidence or examples.
All of Georgia’s Republican congressional delegation and the state party sent a letter to Raffensperger’s office on Tuesday alleging election irregularities that included ineligible or deceased people casting ballots. The Trump campaign on Wednesday morning published an initial news release alleging that ballots were cast on behalf of at least four dead Georgians.
Raffensperger said his office will investigate claims of reported fraud or irregularities. His office has previously denied and debunked claims of widespread voter fraud as “disinformation and misunderstandings.” Georgia election officials have acknowledged that people will improperly vote, but the scale is likely not large enough to throw the state’s vote towards Trump.
In addition to the by-hand recount, Raffensperger moved the Public Service Commission runoff scheduled for Dec. 1 to Jan. 5.
Counties have until Nov. 13 to certify their results, and the state’s deadline is Nov. 20.
Editor’s note: This story has been updated to correct the date changes for runoff races in the state.
This story was originally published November 11, 2020 at 11:15 AM.