A marathon judicial recount to determine the MP-elect for the Newfoundland riding of Terra Nova-The Peninsulas is expected to finish on Friday.
The recount started in Marystown on May 12, nearly two weeks ago.
Liberal candidate Anthony Germain won the initial count by only 12 votes over Conservative candidate Jonathan Rowe.
A judicial recount will automatically be triggered if the number of votes separating the winner and a runner-up is less than 0.1 per cent of the total votes. More than 41,000 votes were cast in the newly redrawn riding on election night.
The recount, overseen by Supreme Court Justice Garrett Handrigan, was expected to take between two and three days, but an unprecedented 1,041 ballots needed to be reviewed before the recount could be completed.
The election was April 28, but there are no official results yet to declare either Liberal candidate Anthony Germain or Conservative candidate Jonathan Rowe the winner of the riding of Terra Nova-The Peninsulas. As the CBC’s Heather Gillis reports, that’s expected to change Friday.
Some of those disputed ballots might include those rejected on election night. In all, 579 were rejected in the initial count. A rejected ballot can be accepted during the recount process if the recount teams — which include representatives for each candidate — unanimously agree that the ballot should be reclassified.
The recount was also delayed on Wednesday after public buildings in Marystown were forced to close due to a scheduled water shutoff in the town. A spokesperson for Elections Canada said Wednesday that ballots were stored securely during the delay.
Once Handrigan’s decision is made, it will be shared with Elections Canada — who will then make the announcement of a winner. Handrigan won’t provide a written or oral decision on the matter.
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