Manual Recount Ordered In Miami-Dade House Race
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TALLAHASSEE (CBSMiami) - A manual recount has been ordered for the state House District 118 race, where the candidates are separated by a 50-vote margin after a machine recount in Miami-Dade County.
Robert Ascencio, a Democrat, holds the slim lead over former state Rep. David Rivera, a Republican who is also a former member of Congress.
Under state law, the manual recount was ordered because the winning margin represents less than a quarter of a percent of the 62,771 votes cast in the House race. The recount, which will be conducted by the Miami-Dade canvassing board, will focus on "over" votes, where the machine recount determined a voter may have voted for more than one candidate, and "under" votes, where the machine recount determined a voter may not have selected a candidate.
The law states those ballots may be counted, after a manual inspection, if the canvassing board finds "there is a clear indication on the ballot that the voter has made a definite choice."
Florida Secretary of State Ken Detzner's order set a noon Sunday deadline for completing the manual recount.
The initial machine recount was triggered after the November 8th election, when the results showed Ascencio's victory margin was less than a half of a percent of the total votes cast in the contest.
If Ascencio's victory stands, Democrats will hold 41 seats in the state House, with Republicans controlling 79 seats. Lawmakers convene in an organization session Tuesday to mark the start of the Legislature over the next two years.
The News Service of Florida contributed to this report.