Written by Michael Palomba
San Diego Democrats are requesting a recount in the race for Santee’s District 4 City Council Seat. The seat in question was won by endorsed Republican Dustin Trotter, who secured just 5 votes more than his opponent, Samm Hurst.
The request for a recount was submitted by Will Rodriguez-Kennedy, chairman of the San Diego County Democratic Party, on behalf of Samm Hurst. The chairman sent a letter to County Registrar Michael Vu one day before the December 8th deadline.
I remember watching the 2000 presidential election recounts as a middle school student. I never thought I’d be in a place where I’d request a recount but here we are. As chair of @sandiegodems I have requested a recount for the Santee City Council D4 election @SDVOTE #democracy pic.twitter.com/v3vaftj6js
— Will R.K. (he/him/his) 🇺🇸🏳️🌈🇵🇷 (@WillRK787) December 8, 2020
Vu said that the recount would take place no later than a week from the date of request, however, he also mentioned that the group requesting the recount will need to come up with a deposit for the recount before it begins. As of right now, Vu has not determined the cost.
Rodriguez-Kennedy is calling for a full review of all ballots that were not counted “including unopened or rejected vote-by-mail ballots and provisional ballots, and any relevant information related to those ballots.”
Additionally, he said he wanted to “examine damaged and corresponding remade ballots … data cards, magnetic or other media used to record and store vote data” and other relevant material.”
In an interview on Tuesday, Rodriguez-Kennedy said the County Democratic Party is “well positioned to pay the deposit,” but the party launched a donation page asking supporters to chip in and cover the cost.
Freshly re-elected Mayor John Minto spoke to Trotter regarding the situation, asking him “how he felt about it.”
“We felt he should be seated since the Registrar has declared him as the victor. If things change, and the recount shows incorrect counting, it will be up to the ROV to recertify the election. In that case, at the next council meeting we’ll declare the election recertified and seat Samm Hurst. Let’s just see what happens and let the chips fall where they may.”
San Diego News Desk reached out to Dustin Trotter who pointed to the hypocrisy of Democrats. He said that while Democrats are lambasting Donald Trump for challenging an election, county democrats are doing the same thing.
An earlier version of this article incorrectly stated that the letter from Will Rodriguez-Kennedy was received after the deadline. It was actually received the day before the deadline, and the article has been updated to reflect that.
Photo via MGN
