Judge’s decision expected in Pennsylvania recount case

In his decision, federal judge Paul Diamond said Stein’s allegation of possible election tampering “borders on the irrational”.

It is part of a broader effort by Stein to recount votes in Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, three states with a history of supporting Democrats that were narrowly won by Trump over Democrat Hillary Clinton.

Elections officials worked around the clock starting December 1 to complete the recount by the federal December 13 deadline.

Not that it would have made any difference. Citing the discrepancy between pre-election polls and the outcome in Pennsylvania, Wisconsin and MI, a group of election law experts and computer scientists urged for a full recount in the three states.

Stein could appeal the court’s decision.

“We know that the county clerks and the municipal clerks take their jobs seriously”.

Update: Diamond’s opinion has been published here. “Based on the recount, they can have confidence that Wisconsin’s election results accurately reflect the will of the people, regardless of whether they are counted by hand or by machine”.

A United States federal judge has blocked an attempt by a Green candidate to force a recount in Pennsylvania of votes cast in last month’s presidential election. Further, Plaintiffs have not met any of the requirements for the issuance of a mandatory emergency injunction. He noted that the deadline to certify the state’s electoral votes is Tuesday, making it impossible to hold a recount in time.

Later, Diamond elaborated on the timing.

The petitioners never asked the Commonwealth Court to reduce the size of the bond. The Stein campaign had sought a hand recount in the state but not all counties did one, with some using machines instead to count the ballots.

Neither Plaintiff has alleged that she or he has suffered an actual injury.

George Martin, a spokesman for the Wisconsin Green Party thanked the county clerks and workers who undertook the huge task of recounting almost three million votes but added that the party will review what the recount revealed and release a report in January.

Her demand for a recount in Wisconsin, Pennsylvania and MI was backed by Democratic Party candidate Hillary Clinton. Some college members have called for more information before they vote next week.

Dane County finished the recount Saturday night. Stein shelled out $3.5 million in donor money to force the recount, alleging the unproven possibility of hacking or election manipulation.

“Obviously any foreign breach of our cybersecurity measures is disturbing, and I strongly condemn any such efforts”, McConnell said. She pushed for recounts over concerns about potential hacking and other irregularities. But her attorneys and computer experts offered no proof of that.