Workers recount ballots in Dane County (Photo: Andrew Beckett)
It would be harder to see a repeat of last year’s presidential election recount in Wisconsin, under a bill passed by the state Senate on Tuesday.
The legislation, which is on its way to Governor Scott Walker’s desk for his signature, would restrict recount requests to candidates who lost by less than one-percent in larger elections, or by 40 votes in smaller races. The bill passed on a 20-13 votes, with all Democrats in opposition.
The proposal was in response to the recount the state underwent last fall, following President Donald Trump’s win in Wisconsin. Green Party candidate Jill Stein requested a second look at the ballots in all 72 counties, even though she finished a distant fourth in the race with just over one percent of the vote. Her campaign covered the $3.5 million cost of the process, but state and local officials raised concerns about tying up government resources for a recount that was not expected to change the outcome of the race.
Stein had argued a recount was needed to verify that Wisconsin’s election results had not been hacked. However, the results largely mirrored the returns seen on Election Day.