How can a private citizen get Kansas to recount landslide abortion vote? What the law says

A Kansas woman is requesting a recount of the state’s landslide abortion amendment vote, and has until 5 p.m. Monday to provide a $230,000 payment to fund it.

Kansas voters preserved abortion rights in the state when they overwhelmingly rejected the amendment, which would have removed the right to abortion from Kansas’ constitution and given lawmakers an opening to further restrict or ban the procedure.

Now, activist Melissa Leavitt of Colby is requesting a recount with the support of the far-right Kansas Republican Assembly, a group led by Wichita resident Mark Gietzen. The group has previously championed anti-government causes like opposing fluoridated water. A fundraising page for the initiative had collected less than 20% of the required bond amount as of 3 p.m. on Monday, Aug 15.

Here’s a closer look at how recounts work in Kansas, who can request them, how much they cost and what they could mean for close races.

Who can request a ballot recount?

According to Kansas state law, three groups may request a recount:

• The majority of any county’s board of canvassers—these are the people who hand-count paper ballots and tally up electronic votes following an election

• Any candidate who was running for office during a given election

• Any voter who cast a vote on a ballot initiative

Kansas law does not limit primary or special election recounts to races which resulted only in a small margin of victory for one side. That means that even a ballot initiative with a landslide result like the abortion amendment, which was defeated with 59% of voters opposed compared to 41% in favor according to unofficial results, is eligible for a recount. In general elections, the margin must be small for a recount to move forward.

If, as expected, the recount does not change the outcome of the amendment vote, Leavitt and her backers will be responsible for paying the full cost of the recount in each county where the result does not change. Recount proponents do not have to fund any recounts that change the county-level results of an election, even if these recounts do not ultimately change the overall state’s outcome.

How do ballot recounts work in Kansas?

When a recount is initiated, each county’s election officer appoints a special election board to conduct the recount of all eligible ballots. The election officer cannot sit on the special election board.

Once the person who requested the recount submits a bond payment, the recount must be completed within five days, including Saturdays, Sundays and holidays. The bond payment is an estimate of how much it will cost to perform the recount.

Finally, when the recount is complete, the special election board delivers the updated results to the county’s canvassers, who will then tabulate the final result for the election and release the new outcome data to the public.

Do recounts have to be state-wide?

No. A county’s board of canvassers can only request a recount in their own county, and candidates and voters can request recounts in any number of counties where they dispute the results of an election.

While a candidate or voter can request a recount in as many as all 105 Kansas counties, it doesn’t always happen that way. For example, Kansas’ Republican primary race for state treasurer was extremely close—within a margin of 1% of the votes cast. On Friday, Sen. Caryn Tyson asked for a recount in 55 counties.

How much does a recount cost?

The cost of a recount depends on how many counties are involved. The current request to recount votes on the abortion amendment in Kansas aims to initiate recounts in all 105 counties, at a bond price of nearly $230,000. If the requester cannot produce this money, they may ask for only certain counties to be recounted for a lower bond price.

Anti-abortion activist Mark Gietzen of the Kansas Republican Assembly indicated over the weekend that he may only be able to produce the money for recounts in select counties.

“We’re definitely going to have a recount,” he said. “I cannot give you a definitive (answer) on whether it’s going to be the whole state.”

Who pays for a recount?

Usually, the person who requests the recount is in charge of paying for it using a bond. The exception is for general election races where one candidate won by a margin of 0.5% or less.

Under Kansas law, if a recount changes the outcome of an election, the bond money is returned in full to the person who requested the recount. That means the state will foot the bill for paying the special election boards and canvassers who actually completed the recount.

However, it is rare for recounts to actually change an election’s outcome, and even more unlikely in the case of Kansas’ landslide abortion amendment vote. When a recount does not change the results of an election, the state keeps the bond money and uses it to pay recount staff.

Do you have more questions about policies in the Kansas City area? Ask the Service Journalism team at kcq@kcstar.com.