Published
5 months agoon
The recount is finally over, and state Sen. Melissa Hurtado will remain in office.
After calls to concede earlier in the day from the Hurtado campaign, David Shepard announced he is through with the recount.
“This race has been historically close and as the recount draws towards the end, I believe our path forward to victor is no longer feasible,” Shepard R-Porterville, said in a news release.
The capitulation ends the election drama unsettled since the Nov. 8 election. The leader seemed to flip with every election return in the ensuing weeks until Hurtado, D-Bakersfield, pulled ahead and was certified the winner on Dec. 16 by 20 votes out of nearly 137,000 ballots cast.
The race was so close, Hurtado was not seated by the Constitutionally-mandated start of the new term on Dec. 5. She took her oath of office five days later.
Earlier on Wednesday, Hurtado’s campaign consultant called on Shepard to give up.
“It’s time for David Shepard to admit the race is over,” Hurtado’s campaign consultant, Lisa Gasperoni, said in a news release. “Shepard’s ongoing attempts to undermine the will of the voters and change the outcome of the election to his personal benefit are becoming more and more desperate.”
Shepard, in a text to GV Wire, complained more about who called for him to concede, rather than the substance of the statement.
Hurtado, D-Bakersfield, won Senate District 16 — comprising all or parts of Kern, Tulare, Kings, and Fresno counties. Shepard, R-Porterville, requested a recount.
If the recount changed the results, Shepard would have replaced Hurtado in the Senate.
The count has switched with Shepard picking up nine net votes to reduce the lead to 13. That is not enough to overturn the election, and will not be reflected in the official vote count.
All four counties have concluded their preliminary counts. A breakdown of the recount results:
Shepard indicated he might take legal action in Kings County, but decided against litigation.
Shepard criticized the recount process.
“During the recount, we uncovered blatant mismanagement and inconsistencies of vote counting procedures in multiple counties, which excluded numerous voters from having their votes counted in this election. Violation of the basic constitutional rights upon which our democracy is founded can change election results,” Shepard said.
Shepard promised a summary of the findings in the coming weeks, “to explicate the failures of the Elections Code and of several county officials and their elections offices. This process has brought to light that greater accountability to our local county elections office is vitally necessary to preserve free and fair elections.”
Curiosity drives David Taub. The award-winning journalist might be shy, but feels mighty with a recorder in his hand. He doesn't see it his job to "hold public officials accountable," but does see it to provide readers (and voters) the information needed to make intelligent choices. Taub has been honored with several writing awards from the California News Publishers Association. He's just happy to have his stories read. Joining GV Wire in 2016, Taub covers politics, government and elections, mainly in the Fresno/Clovis area. He also writes columns about local eateries (Appetite for Fresno), pro wrestling (Off the Bottom Rope), and media (Media Man). Prior to joining the online news source, Taub worked as a radio producer for KMJ and PowerTalk 96.7 in Fresno. He also worked as an assignment editor for KCOY-TV in Santa Maria, California, and KSEE-TV in Fresno. He has also worked behind the scenes for several sports broadcasts, including the NCAA basketball tournament, and the Super Bowl. When not spending time with his family, Taub loves to officially score Fresno Grizzlies games. Growing up in the San Francisco Bay Area, Taub is a die-hard Giants and 49ers fan. He graduated from the University of Michigan with dual degrees in communications and political science. Go Blue! You can contact David at 559-492-4037 or at Send an Email
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