Down by 323 votes, Republican Finstad calls for recount in Minnesota's 1st District race

Republican Rep. Brad Finstad is requesting a recount after unofficial results show Democratic challenger Jake Johnson leading the race in Minnesota’s 1st Congressional District by only a few hundred votes, making it one of the tightest races in the country.

Finstad’s campaign said in an emailed statement Thursday afternoon it will allow the recount process to proceed and that they will wait for the results.

“I am grateful to everyone who participated in the election,” the email statement reads. “We will work to ensure that the full process established under state and federal law is followed, so that every vote is counted in an accurate and transparent manner as we move toward a final determination of the results.”

Any candidate can request a recount, but Minnesota law provides for a taxpayer-funded recount when the margin is within 0.25 percent of all votes cast. Results tabulated by the Minnesota Secretary of State’s office show Democrat Jake Johnson with 323 votes more than Finstad, a margin of less than 0.1 percent.

Although the results have not yet been certified, Johnson declared victory Wednesday.

If Johnson does indeed win, he would flip another Republican seat, adding to the “blue tsunami” and the new Democratic majority in the U.S. House.

Johnson is a former high school math teacher in Rochester, and this is his first run for public office.

Finstad told reporters during a watch party in Sleepy Eye on Tuesday night he’s committed to bipartisan collaboration if reelected into office.

“I will work with anybody and everybody that is focused on making our country better,” he said, “and specifically, if we have an opportunity to make southern Minnesota just a little bit better for that next generation.”

Minnesota Secretary of State Steve Simon explained the next steps in the recount process on MPR’s Minnesota Now Thursday, saying “it’s really done on a county level … and each county would do [ballot] counting in a central location in that county.”

“Everyone can watch, everyone can come in,” Simon continued. “You can record it, you can sit there and watch the proceedings, and there would be a hand count.”

“There would be, obviously, representatives from each of the campaigns and the political parties, and in the end … it would be the state canvassing board, which I chair, that would certify those results.”

Simon said those certified results can be contested.

“Any party can go to court and contest the certified results of a recount, and we’ve seen examples of that in Minnesota,” Simon added.

University of Minnesota political scientist Larry Jacobs said the time-intensive process can take several days or even weeks to complete, but it’s important to maintain transparency and faith in the election process.

“It's very public, and each campaign is able to see exactly what's happening,” Jacobs said. “The hope is the result, then, is considered to be legitimate, and the losing candidate doesn't feel like they were cheated out of winning.”

While Johnson’s celebration of his victory may be a little premature, Jacobs said it’s likely his victory will likely be upheld after a recount.

“If the lead was, let's say, a few dozen votes or a few votes, then yes, there's a chance that the race would be reversed,” Jacobs said. “But generally, in Minnesota, if it's in the hundreds, the race stands. I would assume that the effort by Finstad to reverse the results will not succeed.”

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