By: Earnest Jones | 12-08-2016 | News
Photo credit: Gage Skidmore / Flickr

Jill Stein’s Votes Recount In Michigan Could Cost Taxpayers $1.8 million

In a statement made by Michigan’s Secretary of State Ruth Johnson, the proposed recount of Michigan’s presidential election could cost $1 million of taxpayer’s money. Jill Stein has made an announcement that she will request for a statewide recount to clarify against possible fraud and counting errors. However, she only got slightly more than 1 percent of the presidential vote in the presidential election.

Stein is estimated to be charged a cost that will be just under $800 thousand, this comes from the $125 per precinct that she will be charged. However, Chris Thomas who is the Michigan Elections Director made a statement in which he says that the actual cost that Stein will be charged could be slightly more than the original estimate due to the addition of absentee and the final size of the recount. The deal breaker is that taxpayers will be expected to facilitate any costs that will be more than $125 per precinct for the county level.

In a news release, Stein’s campaign announced that it does expect to pay almost $1 million for the Michigan filing fee, this figure has not been accepted by all. For instance, Ruth Johnson says that her estimated cost will double those of Thomas. In a statement made by Johnson, it’s unlikely for the final cost to be known in advance. However, he emphasized that he does not expect $900 to facilitate half of the cost. Stein will be expected to pay $973,250 if the total cost of the recount amounts to $1.8 million. The taxpayers will have to pay the remaining $827,000.

There have been efforts from the Michigan Republican Party supporting Donald Trump’s contest against the recount. Despite Stein's futile efforts, the Board of State canvassers have certified Trump’s victory over Hillary Clinton in Michigan by a total of 10,704 votes. This gives Trump 16 Michigan electoral votes. Sara Anderson, the Michigan Republican Party spokeswoman has emphasized that the recount should be avoided due to its huge costs.

In a statement made by Midland County Clerk, she expressed her concern over the cost that will be incurred; she said that the recount will cost her about $10 thousand but the state will only refund $5,600 .The current cost estimates don’t include the security costs, travel costs, and overtime costs.

Donald Trump’s campaign has filed an objection to the recount which will be reviewed by Michigan’s Board of State Canvassers. The objection clearly states that voters should not risk having the Electoral College door knocked off its hinges because a 1 percent candidate is not satisfied with the election results. The objection also highlights saving taxpayers money as a major reason to cancel the recount.

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