The razor-thin Pennsylvania Senate race between Democratic incumbent Sen. Bob Casey and Republican David McCormick is officially headed for a statewide recount, Secretary of the Commonwealth Al Schmidt announced.

What You Need To Know

  • The razor-thin Pennsylvania Senate race between Democratic incumbent Sen. Bob Casey and Republican David McCormick is officially headed for a statewide recount
  • McCormick’s 0.4 percentage-point edge over Casey meets the threshold for an automatic recount in Pennsylvania, which is required in the state when the margin between two candidates is less than half a percentage point
  • Republicans easily glided to securing a majority in the upper chamber last week despite some Democratic incumbents, such as Wisconsin Sen. Tammy Baldwin and Nevada Sen. Jacky Rosen, appearing to outperform Democratic presidential candidate Vice President Kamala Harris in their states to keep their spots in the Senate
  • Meanwhile, it is possible Pennsylvania will not be the only battleground state seeing its senate race this year head to a recount as Wisconsin and Michigan races remain very tight; the deadline for Republican candidate Eric Hovde in Wisconsin to peition for a recount should he decide to do so could be sooner then expected

As of Thursday, McCormick held a 48.9% to 48.5% lead over Casey – amounting to just over 25,700 votes – with 99% of the ballots cast in the race counted, according to the Associated Press. More than 6.9 million people voted in the ultra-competitive Senate contest in total and more than 80,000 ballots still need to be counted, Schmidt said in his announcement on Wednesday. 

McCormick’s 0.4% edge over Casey meets the threshold for an automatic recount in Pennsylvania, which is required in the state when the margin between two candidates is less than half a percentage point. 

In his announcement, Schmidt noted counties – once they finish counting ballots still outstanding from last week’s election – are required to start their recounts no later than Wednesday of next week, Nov. 20. The recounts must be completed by noon on Nov. 26 and results will be published the next day. 

Schmidt said the cost of the recount is estimated to be more than $1 million in taxpayer funds. 

The race between three-term incumbent Casey and McCormick is one of a handful of ultra-competitive battles for Senate seats in key swing states won by President-elect Donald Trump in this year’s election.

Republicans easily glided to securing a majority in the upper chamber last week despite some Democratic incumbents, such as Wisconsin Sen. Tammy Baldwin and Nevada Sen. Jacky Rosen, outperforming Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris to keep their spots in the Senate. 

As of Thursday, the Associated Press has declared that Republicans will hold 53 seats in the Senate next year while Democrats will hold 47. But the AP’s decision to call the Pennsylvania race in favor of McCormick last week received pushback, including from the state’s other Democratic Sen. John Fetterman, who appeared to point out that the number of outstanding ballots in the contest is more than the Republican candidate’s lead over Casey. 

“We still have tens of thousands of votes to be counted across the Commonwealth,” Fetterman wrote in a post on social media, adding that the AP "shouldn’t make a call in this race until every Pennsylvanian has their vote counted.”

Several Republican senators took to social media last week to express outrage at Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer for not inviting McCormick to orientation for new members of Congress taking place in Washington this week before the Democratic leader pivoted and McCormick was invited. 

Meanwhile, it is possible Pennsylvania will not be the only battleground state seeing its senate race this year head to a recount. 

The Associated Press called Wisconsin’s race for Baldwin, the Democratic incumbent, but as of Thursday, she leads Republican Eric Hovde by 0.9% with 99% of the votes counted. 

There is no automatic recount in the Badger State but a candidate can petition for one if the result is within one percentage point in races in which more than 4,000 cast ballots, as is the case in the contest between Baldwin and Hovde. 

In a video posted on social media earlier this week, Hovde made clear he was not conceding and was considering requesting a recount. Under Wisconsin law, Hovde would have to pay for such a recount should he request one. The state reimburses a candidate if their requested recount ends up changing the initial outcome.  

“Once the final information is available and all options are reviewed, I will announce my decision on how I will proceed,” Hovde said in the video.  

In Wisconsin, candidates have until 5 p.m. CT on the third business day after the last county clerk delivers its county’s statement of the canvass of the votes to the state’s elections commission to petition for a recount. The last day for counties to submit those statements is Nov. 19, which would make the deadline for a recount petition Nov. 22. 

However, that deadline could be pushed up if counties submit their statements earlier. As of Thursday, there are only three counties in the state that have yet to submit its canvass statement, Spectrum News was told. 

In Michigan, the Associated Press called its senate race for Democratic Rep. Elissa Slotkin over Republican Mike Rogers. Slotkin holds just a 0.3% edge for Rogers with 99% of the votes in. Should Rogers wish to request a recount he has until two days after the completion of the canvass of the votes to do so under state law. The deadline in Michigan for the Boards of County Canvassers to complete the canvass is Nov. 19.