Wednesday, failed Green Party presidential candidate Jill Stein, filed for a recount in Michigan. The recount is set to begin Friday or Saturday.
Stein maintains she’s out to bust the two-party stranglehold and to ensure the veracity of America’s election system. She also claims she’s not working in conjunction with any other campaign. I’m sure it’s just a coincidence that the’s only filing or suing for recounts in rust-belt states where Hillary was expected to win, but did not.
But back to Michigan:
“After a presidential election tarnished by the use of outdated and unreliable machines and accusations of irregularities, people of all political persuasions are asking if our election results are reliable,” Stein said Wednesday. “We must recount the votes so we can build trust in our election system. We need to verify the vote in this and every election so that Americans can be sure we have a fair, secure and accurate voting system.”Michigan Secretary of State Ruth Johnson said in a statement Wednesday that it is “unusual” for a candidate that received such a small share of the vote — Stein got just 1 percent in Michigan — to request a recount, “especially when there is no evidence of hacking or fraud, or even a credible allegation of any tampering.”President-elect Donald Trump won Michigan by a razor-thin margin, defeating Democrat Hillary Clinton there by just 10,704 votes (out of a total 4.8 million cast). The results were finally certified on Monday, almost three weeks after Election Day.
The recount effort is going to be a pricey undertaking, costing close to $4 million:
Green Party candidate Jill Stein’s quest to recount Michigan’s 4.8 million ballots in an unprecedented autopsy of a presidential election could cost taxpayers more than $4 million.Stein formally requested Wednesday a hand recount of the state’s presidential election, a labor-intensive undertaking that is expected to begin Friday morning and could result in marathon counting sessions until the Dec. 13 deadline.Republican President-elect Donald Trump won by 10,704 votes over Democrat Hillary Clinton, getting 47.5 percent of the vote to the former secretary of state’s 47.27 percent. Stein received 51,463 votes or about 1.1 percent.The Green Party nominee’s attorneys left a $973,250 check at the state Bureau of Elections to cover Stein’s legally required fees for seeking a recount of 6,300 precincts.
Needless to say, Michigan’s GOP Chair, Ronna Romney McDaniel (niece of Mitt Romney), is not impressed:
Ronna Romney McDaniel, chairwoman of the Michigan Republican Party, criticized the recount efforts, according to the Detroit Free Press.“The filing by Jill Stein is a reckless attempt to undermine the will of Michigan voters,” she said. “Jill Stein made her 1% temper tantrum official and will waste millions of Michigan taxpayers’ dollars, and has acknowledged that the recount will not change anything regarding the Presidential election.”
Stein also filed for recounts in Wisconsin and Pennsylvania. Hillary’s campaign joined the suit in Wisconsin yesterday.
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