Secretary of State's office to fix State Canvassing report

Posted at 3:39 PM on November 26, 2010 by Tom Scheck
Filed under: Campaign 2010, Campaign 2010: Minnesota Governor, Recount 2010

Minnesota Secretary of State Mark Ritchie's office incorrectly reported vote totals for Republican Tom Emmer in Fillmore County on the State Canvassing Report. The report, which is submitted to the five member State Canvassing Board, stated that Emmer received 3647 votes in Fillmore Count, not 3648 votes. I noticed the error when I was compiling a document in preparation for the recount.

John Aiken, a spokesman for the Secretary of State's office, said there was a transcription error when they were reporting the figures. He pointed to the Secretary of State's website to show the correct number for Fillmore County.

"The mistake was on the document," Aiken said. "It was a transcription error, not a count error."

Aiken said the office intends to look into why there was a transcription error in Fillmore County on Monday. He emphasized Democrat Mark Dayton continues to lead Emmer by 8770 votes, a small enough margin to trigger an automatic recount.

The figures on the State Canvassing Board report are important because they provide a baseline heading into Monday's recount.

Elections officials across the state will start hand counting every ballot to determine a winner in the race for governor. The recount is required by state law.

MPR's Jess Mador contributed to this report.

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