COVINGTON, IN — The GOP race for Indiana Senate 23rd District isn’t over.
Republican challenger Paula Copenhaver lost her bid by three votes to unseat incumbent Spencer Deery to appear on the November ballot. But on Monday, Copenhaver filed for a recount.
“Ensuring the integrity and accuracy of our elections is fundamental to public trust in our constitutional republic,” Copenhaver said in a news release sent at 4 p.m. Monday. “After carefully reviewing the available information, we have obtained documented evidence of illegal voting by unqualified voters in the Senate District 23 Republican Primary.
“We are formally pursuing a recount to ensure votes were properly counted and returned in this very close election and that legal votes are counted, while illegal votes are not,” the former Fountain County clerk said.
Deery has not yet responded to a request for comment.
The 23rd District is comprised of parts of Tippecanoe, Montgomery, Fountain, Warren, Vermillion and Parke counties. County election boards throughout the state had until Friday, May 15, to certify the elections, which was done in all six counties of the 23rd District.
Between May 5’s election and Friday’s deadline for certification, the spread has been as high as four votes and as close as two votes as county election boards considered provisional ballots.
“This is about transparency, accountability, and confidence in the final outcome. Hoosiers deserve a complete and fair review, and we are committed to following the legal process to its conclusion,” she said.
“Republicans and Democrats deserve confidence in the integrity of our primary system for choosing each party’s candidates,” Copenhaver said. “In this case, participation in the Republican primary by individuals not qualified to vote in the Republican primary violated state law and undermined the will of Hoosier Republicans, undercutting the integrity and fairness of our primary.”
A recount commission decides whether specific votes are counted, according to the Indiana secretary of state office. The commission will conduct the tally in person in the counties where the votes were cast.
There is no indication yet when the recount commission might begin its work.
Reach Ron Wilkins at rwilkins@jconline.com. Follow on Twitter: @RonWilkins2.
This article originally appeared on Lafayette Journal & Courier: GOP challenger Copenhaver files for recount in 23rd District
Reporting by Ron Wilkins, Lafayette Journal & Courier / Lafayette Journal & Courier
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