Recount needed in Supreme Court primary
(AP) - Minnesota election officials are preparing for their first statewide recount since 1962 after a close finish in a primary race for state Supreme Court justice.
Two candidates seeking to challenge sitting Justice Lorie Gildea were separated by less than one half of 1 percentage point. It could require the manual review of more than 400,000 ballots, said John Aiken, a spokesman for the Secretary of State.
Gildea was the top vote-getter, and unofficial returns have Hennepin County District Court Judge Deborah Hedlund ahead of defense lawyer Jill Clark by 1,369 votes for the second slot on November's ballot.
Aiken said the recount will begin on Wednesday, the day after the state canvassing board meets. It must be done in time to mail absentee ballots in early October.
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"It is an undertaking to say the least," Aiken said.
The last statewide recount was in the 1962 governor's race. That year, DFLer Karl Rolvaag edged Republican Elmer Andersen by 91 votes.
A second recount is expected in the Independence Party's primary for House District 3A, where Bill Hamm won by three votes over Chris Pfeifer.
(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
