St. Lucie County recounts partial early votes; Murphy leads over West in District 18 House race

Election workers recount partial early votes

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Photographer: WPTV
Copyright 2012 Scripps Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

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Posted: 11/11/2012

By: Jeff Skrzypek

FORT PIERCE, Fla. -- - Hours of recounting came to an end on Sunday in Saint Lucie County with results that continue to fuel a growing controversy surrounding the U.S. House of Representatives race for District 18.

Republican Rep. Allen West picked up some votes on Sunday during the recount, but it was not enough to cut the margin of victory to trigger an automatic recount.

Democrat Patrick Murphy remained ahead of West on Sunday by a margin above .5%.

Originally it was thought St. Lucie County election workers would recount all early voting ballots.

Only the last three days of early voting were recounted. Assistant County Attorney Heather Young told WPTV NewsChannel 5 the recount would only include the last three days of early voting because those were the only days the county encountered problems reading memory cards.

"We'll pursue every legal action available to us to ensure that every vote is counted fairly and accurately in this election and once we're satisfied that's been the case, obviously we'll be ready to move forward. But at this point and time, there's a number of questions that need to be answered," said Tim Edson, the campaign manager for Allen West.

An attorney for Murphy was also present during the recount and said the West campaign is wasting time in pursuing legal action.

"Their ball seems to be continuing to change and it is clear, it is a resounding victory for Patrick Murphy and it is time for us to move forward and do the people's business and it's time for Mr. West to take the honorable course, recognized the inevitable," said Sean Dominick, an attorney for Murphy.

A recount is set for the mayoral race for the City of Fort Pierce on Wednesday. If a judge approves a recount in the District 18 race, it also would happen on Wednesday.

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St. Lucie County recounts partial early votes; Murphy leads over West in District 18 House race

Election workers recount partial early votes

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