Recount 2016: Jill Stein’s Campaign Changes Strategy in Pennsylvania Bid
Jill Stein and her party have changed their strategy in seeking a state-wide recount in Pennsylvania.
Her campaign says it will go to the federal courts, hours after dropping an appeal in a Pennsylvania state court.
The Green Party had earlier said voters could not afford the $1 million bond ordered by the state court.
Jill Stein has tried to force recounts in Michigan and Wisconsin as well; all three were narrowly won by Donald Trump.
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The Greens’ decision comes two days before a court hearing was scheduled on the case in Pennsylvania where Donald Trump’s margin of victory was 49,000, or less than 1%.
Donald Trump’s supporters are trying to block the recount bid, which are unlikely to change the polls results if they take place.
“Make no mistake, the Stein campaign will continue to fight for a state-wide recount in Pennsylvania,” recount campaign lawyer Jonathan Abady said in a statement.
“We are committed to this fight to protect the civil and voting rights of all Americans.”
Jonathan Abady said barriers to a recount in Pennsylvania are pervasive and the state court system is ill-equipped to address the problem.
Jill Stein, who was the Green Party’s presidential candidate, says the recount bid is needed to explore whether voting machines and systems had been hacked and the election result manipulated.
Her campaign has so far offered no evidence of hacking, and supporters of Donald Trump have asked the state court to dismiss the case.
A recount has already started in Wisconsin, which Donald Trump won by 22,000 votes. On December 2, a federal court rejected a request by Donald Trump’s supporters to immediately halt the recount there, but allowed a lawsuit to proceed.
In Michigan, Donald Trump’s team filed a complaint with the elections board to block a recount of all 4.8 million ballots cast in the state, which he won by 10,700 votes. A recount there could begin next week.
Hillary Clinton, who lost to Donald Trump, has kept silent on the matter, but her campaign has said it would co-operate with Jill Stein’s recount efforts.