HARRISBURG – Jonathan A. Saidel, a candidate in the Democratic primary for lieutenant governor, has requested that no recount be made in the close race, said Secretary of the Commonwealth Pedro A. Cortés.
According to the unofficial returns from the May 18 primary election, Saidel trailed H. Scott Conklin by less than one-half of one percent of the total number of votes cast for the office, which would automatically trigger a recount in all 67 counties. The Department of State estimated the cost of the recount would have exceeded $500,000.
“I salute Jonathan Saidel for making this difficult decision in order to save Pennsylvania’s taxpayers a substantial amount of money,” Cortés said. “During these historically challenging financial times, every dollar is important to the continuation of programs that serve the public. I thank Mr. Saidel for putting our residents’ interests ahead of his own aspirations.”
Conklin and Saidel received the two highest vote totals among Democratic candidates for lieutenant governor. The total number of votes cast for the office is 901,966 votes, as of 4 p.m. today. One-half of 1 percent of the total is 4,509 votes.
The unofficial returns provided by the counties as of 4 p.m. today show Saidel trailed Conklin by 3,846 votes and was the only defeated candidate within the one-half of one percent margin.
• H. Scott Conklin – 318,489 votes
• Jonathan A. Saidel – 314,643 votes (trails Conklin by 3,846 votes)
• Doris A. Smith-Ribner – 268,834 votes (trails Conklin by 49,655 votes)
Unofficial elections returns are available through www.dos.state.pa.us by clicking on the View Elections Results link on the homepage. For more information on elections and voter registration, call the Department of State’s toll-free hotline at 1-877-VOTESPA (1-877-868-3772) or visit www.VotesPA.com.