STURGIS, S.D. – There will be a recount in the Meade County Treasurer’s Republican Primary June 4 election between incumbent Robin Strake and Robin Korth. The vote margin between the two was within the two-percent margin allowable by state law.
Shrake got 51 percent of the vote, or 1,862 votes and Korth, 49 percent or 1,818. Seventy-seven percent of the eligible Meade County registered voters did not participate in the election.
The Meade County Commission, acting as the election canvassing board met last Friday. Korth had three days in which to request the recount. She did so on Monday.
Circuit Court Judge John Fitzgerald issued a order affirming the action on Wednesday.
The recount board will conduct the action at 9 a.m., Monday, June 24 in the Meade County Auditor’s Office.
There must be a member of each political party, even if both were not part of the vote, a member of the bar and the auditor.
Fitzgerald named Barb Keszler to represent the Republican Party and Karen Page-Hunt, the Democrat Party. The referee, who must be an attorney, will be Bob Haivala.
There are 41 precincts in Meade County. The two precincts that were hand-counted, Faith and one from Black Hawk, will again be hand-counted. The other 39 will again be machine counted. This is the same manner in which the votes were recorded on election night. The process should be completed within a couple of hours.
Due to the fact there will be a recount, Meade County will not have to conduct a post-election audit.
Former Secretary of State Chris Nelson has stated he has only seen two recounts change the election outcome when discussing the merits of machine vote counting.
The four-terms treasurer term starts in January, 2025.
