Republican Senate Primary Heads to Recount

Acting Pennsylvania Secretary of State Leigh Chapman announced Wednesday afternoon that the Republican primary for the U.S. Senate in Pennsylvania is headed to a recount. (RELATED: Doctors Speculate Democratic Senate Nominee May Be Hiding True Health Condition)

A margin of less than 0.5% between the two highest vote-getters automatically triggers a recount. The difference between celebrity heart surgeon Mehmet Oz and ex-hedge fund manager Dave McCormick falls well within that difference.

Oz currently leads by 902 votes out of approximately 1.3 million.

Townhall's Spencer Brown reports:

The recount will begin on Friday before the long Memorial Day weekend, and the tabulation of final results must be completed by June 7th — at which point Pennsylvanians will finally know who will represent the GOP in November's critical midterm race against Democrat John Fetterman. It will either be TV doc Mehmet Oz — who was endorsed by former President Donald Trump — or businessman David McCormick. 

The latter filed a lawsuit on Monday to require election officials to count mail ballots that lacked a date on their outer envelope, as required by Pennsylvania election code. But that move drew opposition from the Republican National Committee and Republican Party of Pennsylvania who intervened against McCormick in the litigation.

Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Minnesota and Texas held primary elections on Tuesday. Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger won his primary against Congressman Jody Hice. U.S. Rep. Mo Brooks forced Katie Britt into a GOP Senate runoff in Alabama. In neighboring Georgia, Heisman Trophy winner Herschel Walker won the GOP Senate nomination to challenge Sen. Raphael Warnock (D). Finally, in Arkansas, Sarah Huckabee Sanders swept the GOP's gubernatorial primary (making her the heavy favorite in November).

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