Congressional candidate seeks recount of vote totals
Tom Guild, who lost the Democratic runoff for the 5th Congressional District by 40 votes, on Friday requested a recount in Oklahoma and Seminole counties.
Supporters raised the $2,700 needed to pay for the recount, which will be held Tuesday.
Al McCaffrey, of Oklahoma City, defeated Guild in the election.
The race was a rematch of 2014, when McAffrey beat Guild for the Democratic nomination in the congressional district.
This past Tuesday, McAffrey received 8,025 votes to Guild’s 7,985.
Guild said he is following the wishes of his supporters in seeking a recount.
He compared use of the recount provisions to “exercising an unused muscle.”
Faith in system
It is exceedingly rare for a recount to reverse the outcome of a race, election officials said.
Paul Ziriax, secretary of the state Election Board, said that in a recount, ballots are counted by workers and compared to the machine-counted results.
“I have extreme confidence in our voting devices,” he said.
Hand recounts over the last couple years have produced vote totals nearly identical to the machine-counted returns.
This is the fourth time Guild has run for the House. He also ran once for the Corporation Commission.
So far, he’s been unable to gain office in these attempts.
Guild won Pottawatomie and Seminole counties in the district. McCaffrey won the Oklahoma County part of the district 6,993 to 6,640.
The 5th District is represented by Republican Rep. Steve Russell, of Choctaw, who is heavily favored to win re-election. Libertarian Zachary Knight, of Edmond, also will be on the Nov. 8 ballot.