Terra Nova-The Peninsulas recount result could take days, judge says
More than 1,000 disputed ballots need to be reviewed in race initially decided by 12
The ballot recount in one of the tightest races in this year's federal election continued into its third day on Wednesday in Marystown, N.L.
But the final winner may not be known for another few days.
That's because more than one thousand disputed ballots need to be reviewed.
Liberal Anthony Germain initially beat Conservative Jonathan Rowe by only 12 votes in the newly redrawn Terra Nova-The Peninsulas riding. That razor-thin margin prompted an automatic judicial recount.
Supreme Court Justice Garrett Handrigan, the judge overseeing the recount, told CBC News Wednesday evening that there are an unprecedented 1,041 disputed ballots that still need to be reviewed — a process he'll begin to undertake as soon as Thursday.
Some of those disputed ballots might include those rejected on election night. In all, 579 were rejected in the initial count.
They can be rejected for a number of reasons, including how an elector indicates their chosen candidate.
For example, a ballot must be rejected by the recount team if the voter did not make a mark in the circle next to a candidate's name. Further, if there are any identifying markers or a voter marked for a person other than a listed candidate, those are grounds for rejection.
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.
In such a tight race, every vote in the 279 ballot boxes counts. Eleven of those boxes include special ballots, and 23 boxes hold votes cast in advanced polls.
The recount process has been ongoing since Monday, and was expected to take between two and three days.
Although both candidates have expressed confidence, the outcome of the recount is not set in stone. The Quebec riding of Terrebonne flipped to the Liberals from the Bloc Quebecois by a single vote.
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With files from Heather Gillis