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Elections have recounts for a reason. Political races can sometimes be incredibly close, even carefully run contests can sometimes feature administrative error, and getting the count right is of the utmost importance — both for that individual race, and for maintaining public trust in our electoral process.
So while it is undoubtedly frustrating to wait to find out definitively who will be representing Maine’s 2nd Congressional District in Washington next year, as well as who will serve as Pennsylvania’s second U.S. senator and finalize the margin of Republican control in the chamber, this is actually the process working as it is supposed to under law.
And that law is paramount. That is why the recent comments from a Democratic county official in Pennsylvania were so deserving of repudiation.
“People violate laws any time they want,” Bucks County Board of Commissioners Chair Diane Ellis-Marseglia said last week according to the Philadelphia Inquirer, as she voted to count certain absentee ballots with issues such as missing dates, even though the state supreme court had ruled those invalid. “So, for me, if I violate this law it’s because I want a court to pay attention. There’s nothing more important than counting votes.”
In elections, there is something more important than counting votes: Counting votes in accordance with the law.
These irresponsible comments, which Ellis-Marseglia has since apologized for while saying they were mischaracterized, drew deserved rebukes from both the Trump campaign and from Pennsylvania’s Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro.
We’ve been saying it repeatedly for years, sometimes seemingly to no avail: People need to respect the process. Sometimes that process can take time. Sometimes it includes recounts and legal challenges. And sometimes, it even includes rulings and results that we don’t like. It must always include a respect for and adherence to the law. Any delays or disappointing outcomes should be met with the same respect we give speedy victories.
In both Maine and Pennsylvania, the law provides for recounts when contests are very close, like these two currently are.
Here in CD 2, current Democratic Rep. Jared Golden won a ranked-choice tabulation (which itself has added some confusion and frustrating delay to the process) over Republican challenger Austin Theriaut by less than 1 percent of the vote. Maine law allows a candidate to request a recount in this type of race when the margin between the candidates is below 1 percent, as Theriault and his campaign have done.
In Pennsylvania, Republican challenger Dave McCormick has bested incumbent Democrat Sen. Bob Casey by less than 0.3 percent. This too is within the 0.5 percent margin for a recount, which is automatic for statewide offices under Pennsylvania law.
So, despite the implication from some Republicans, Casey does not need to waive the recount and concede the race at this point. County commissioners and other officials need to follow the law, surely, and that same legal process provides for a recount in this case. It may be slow, it may be cumbersome, but it is the law in action.
The same is true as Theriault pursues a recount here in Maine. For both Theriault and Casey, it is their right, and arguably their responsibility, to ensure that the process is followed and these legal steps are exhausted.
“We’re very proud of the campaign we ran, proud of the grassroots supporters that we had,” Theriault’s campaign manager, Shawn Roderick, said last week. “We owe it to them and owe it to Rep. Theriault to have this race recounted.”
How Therialt’s team has gone about this request also matters a great deal. Unlike Donald Trump and his lawyers in 2020, they have not been hurling baseless accusations of fraud any time there is a perceived irregularity. Instead, they have calmly raised questions about vote totals in some areas, like in Presque Isle where Therialt underperformed other Republican candidates, and emphasized the importance of verifying an accurate vote count.
It is one thing to essentially say, hey, these numbers are incredibly close and some don’t quite look right, let’s recount them as outlined in state law. It would be quite another for someone to say, these don’t look right, it must be fraud, this is all a scam. Thankfully, we have seen Theriault take the first approach here in Maine’s 2nd District. Let this be a reminder that there is a responsible way to raise questions and make sure our elections are decided fairly and accurately.
Of course, once these legal steps are concluded in both Maine and Pennsylvania, the eventual loser of each race should respect those ultimate results and concede to the winner. Delayed results like these can create understandable frustration, but that frustration must be met with patience and a continued respect for the process.
