Before I start, I'm going to address the elephant in the room:
The time to fight for your candidate was before the election. The time to financially support your candidate was before the election. Throwing money at a recount doesn't guarantee an outcome you'll be happy with. Relying on our local city, county, or state employees to recount an election takes time, and resources away from our community.
With that being said, there are unique times when an election should be recounted. In Wisconsin, our local elections are ruled by the Wisconsin Elections Commission (WEC)- and the handbook on Election Recount Procedures.
Before moving forward with anything, please check to make sure the candidate in question wants you to move forward with a recount too. Recounts are under close scrutiny - and might reveal issues with ballots for your preferred candidate too.
Let's jump in and answer a few common recount questions:
When does the recount start? There is no automatic recount - even if the results are very, very close. A recount must be requested.
Who can request a recount? According to the document, "Any individual who voted at a referendum election may request a recount of the referendum results. Only an aggrieved candidate, defined as a candidate for an office whose total votes were within 1% of the winner’s vote total when at least 4,000 votes were cast or within 40 votes of the winner’s total if fewer than 4,000 votes were cast may request a recount of results for an office."
How do I request a recount? The WEC says this needs to be done by, "...filing a sworn petition with the filing officer along with the filing fee... For all other offices, a petition for recount must be filed not earlier than the completion of the canvass and not later than 5 p.m. on the 3rd business day following the last meeting day of the board of canvassers determining the result for the office/referendum."
How much does a filing fee cost?
"For races where fewer than 4,000 votes were cast: No fee is required if the difference in the total votes cast between the leading candidate and those cast for the petitioner or between the affirmative and negative votes cast at a referendum is less than 10. If the difference is at least 10 votes, a filing fee is required.
"If more than 4,000 votes are cast: No fee is required if the difference between the leading candidate and those cast for the petitioner or between the affirmative and negative votes cast at a referendum is 0.25% or less. If the difference is greater than 0.25%, a filing fee is required."
Where do I file a recount petition? "The petitioner files the recount petition with the filing officer with whom nomination papers or a declaration of candidacy are filed for that office."
What happens after a petition is filed? "Upon receipt of a valid recount petition, the filing officer shall prepare a public notice of the recount (see Appendix for an example) pursuant to Wis. Stat. § 19.84 describing when and where the recount will be held."
Can I watch the recount? "Any person may attend the recount. This includes the candidates, their representatives or legal counsel, media representatives, and any other interested persons. The canvass board members and the tabulators are the only persons who may handle and touch the ballots and other election materials. The board of canvassers must, however, allow the candidates and their representatives and/or legal counsel to view and identify the election materials. Wis. Stat. § 9.01(1)(b)11. The recount statute does not specifically dictate how many individuals must be allowed to observe a recount, but it is clear that the ballot and materials must be available for candidates and their representatives to view and offer any objections to a ballot being counted. Wis. Stat. § 9.01(1)(b)11."
We hope this helps answer some questions about recount laws in the State of Wisconsin. If nothing else, we also hope this motivates you actively participate in elections before election day. Especially for candidates in local office, making phone calls, helping pay for flyers and lawn signs can go a long way. These options are less stressful than running to the sidelines, and begging the referee for an instant replay.
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