Assembly lawmakers passed a bill Wednesday that would have blocked a statewide presidential election recount in 2016. After votes in the 2016 presidential election were counted, Green Party candidate Jill Stein — who came in fourth in the race — requested a recount. Had the bill authored by Sen. Devin LeMahieu, R-Oostburg, and Rep. Ron Tusler, R-Harrison, been law, only Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, who lost to President Donald Trump by less than 1 percent, would have been able to request a recount.
Under the bill, only candidates within 1 percent of the winner’s vote total in an election with at least 4,000 votes would be eligible to request a recount. If an election includes fewer than 4,000 votes, candidates must be within 40 votes to request a recount.
The proposal also shortens the deadline for a recount petition to be filed but increases the amount of time a petitioner has to pay costs and clerks have to issue refunds. The state Election Commission refunded the Stein campaign $1.5 million for the recount after she raised more than $3.5 million to pay for it.
Full Article: Assembly passes bill limiting who can seek election recounts | State-and-regional | wiscnews.com.