Office of the Secretary of State certifies recount for Commissioner of Public Lands Primary Race
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Today the Washington State Office of the Secretary of State issued a press release announcing the results of the recount for the statewide Commissioner of Public Lands Primary Race -Below:
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 4, 2024
Office of the Secretary of State certifies recount for Commissioner of Public Lands Primary Race
OLYMPIA — The Office of the Secretary of State certified results of the mandatory statewide manual recount Wednesday for the August 6 Primary race for Commissioner of Public Lands, confirming Republican Jaime Herrera Beutler and Democrat Dave Upthegrove will advance to the November General Election.
The recount indicated a 49-vote margin separating second-place finisher Upthegrove from Republican Sue Kuehl Pederson, who finished third in the contest. The margin originally stood at 51 votes. After consolidating the amended results certified by each county canvassing board, Upthegrove gained four votes and Pederson gained six votes.
Variances, such as an overvote or undervote were identified during the manual recount which led to the overall change in the count. These discrepancies were a result of careful examination of voter intent on some ballots. The Office of the Secretary of State and counties within Washington use the established Statewide Standards on What is a Vote, a longstanding standard for determining voter intent when voters’ ballot markings are unclear.
“This recount was a significant undertaking that required meticulous attention to detail to ensure every vote was counted fairly and accurately,” Assistant Secretary of State Kevin McMahan said. “It demonstrates the accuracy and reliability of Washington’s elections, as the vote counting equipment tabulated votes correctly, with the few variances arising from questions about voter intent. I commend all counties for their diligent efforts in conducting a transparent and secure process that reflects the will of the voters.”
Recount results and more information are available on the Office of the Secretary of State’s Elections website. Ballots for the Nov. 5 General Election will be mailed to voters by Friday, Oct. 18.
OF NOTE: Earlier today, the Washington State Republican Party (WAGOP) also issues a press release regarding the re-count - Below:
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - September 4, 2024
Questions remain after hand-recount certification in
primary election for WA Commissioner of Public Lands
Bellevue—Today’s state certification of the hand recount in the primary election for WA Commissioner of Public Lands leaves many questions unanswered. The hand recount, however, is useful as a starting point for auditing Washington state elections. Those concerned about election integrity should be encouraged by the questions it raises.
Among the questions: Why were some counties able to recount their ballots by hand in a day or two, while others struggled to finish their hand recounts on time? Why did so many county auditors reject cured ballots that they should have accepted? Why were certain ballots initially counted that were upon recount, instead “undervotes” that shouldn’t have been counted at all? Why are some counties using online “apps” to cure ballots when state law clearly says that’s not legal?
The Washington State Republican Party (WAGOP) intends to find answers to these questions in the coming days.
Most urgently, the WAGOP believes that some of these answers could affect the outcome of today’s certification of the hand recount.
The WAGOP is keeping all options open for responding to today’s certification from the WA Secretary of State. The Party may file lawsuits challenging the certification. It may also file lawsuits challenging specific county recounts. Or the Party may focus on improving recount processes, going forward.
While the hand recount hasn’t resolved issues around elections in our state, it begins the process. It shows us where the problems are in the current system. And it suggests where we should focus on fixing those problems in the very near future.
The WAGOP is committed to fixing those problems.
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Bill Bruch
Bill Bruch is the WA State GOP Election Integrity Chairman, WAGOP Executive Board Member, 4-Term Skagit County GOP Chairman, Citizen Journalist, Blogger, Business Owner, “2021 Citizen Activist of the Year” award by the Olympic Conference, 2020 WA State House Representative Candidate, Former Council Member, and WA State 2016 and 2024 RNC National Convention Delegate.