Challenger asks for recount in House District 36 GOP primary

Challenger Patrick Smith on Wednesday asked for a recount of the vote against incumbent Bryan Shupe in the Republican primary for District 36 in the Delaware House.

The key issue: one more absentee vote recorded Wednesday for Shupe and the state’s arithmetic on calling for an automatic recount.

Smith said in a statement that he filed a petition Wednesday with the Board of Canvass at the Sussex County Superior Court and the Delaware Department of Elections to:

• “Request a recount of this election.
• “Challenge the determination not to conduct an automatic recount.
• “Pause any certification of election results until representatives from both campaigns are able to inspect and count the ballots in a recount, including the absentee ballots and their envelopes.”

Bryan Shupe

In a statement Shupe said, I would personally prefer a recount—just so everything is transparent, and everyone can see all the votes. know that was already done, but if people have questions, I’m completely fine with it.

“In the General Assembly, I’ve always been for transparency and openness, and if it comes down to it, or something happens, if they ask me if I want it—I’d prefer a recount.”

Shupe is CEO of Delaware LIVE, which owns Milford LIVE.

Smith said, “We believe this recount is the most transparent way to ensure the people of District 36 have the election results they voted for with full confidence. A recount is most appropriate when margins are so razor-thin.”

Tuesday ended with unofficial results showing Smith at 1,145 votes and Shupe at 1,156, out of 2,301 votes cast.

Patrick Smith

When the absentee ballot for Shupe was added Wednesday, the vote was now 1,145 to 1,157, out of 2,302 votes.

“The threshold to trigger an automatic recount is a 0.5% vote difference. 0.5% of 2,302 is 11.51,” Smith said. “The department has informed us that the increased overall vote differential from 11 votes to 12 votes is above the margin of error required to trigger an auto-recount.”

Smith said he has requested digital images of all ballots, including absentee ballots and envelopes, in order to preserve the data.

Unofficial primary results

According to the unofficial figures posted by the department, as of Wednesday, Smith had 923 machine votes, 33 absentee votes and 189 early votes. And Shupe had 880 machine votes, 81 absentee votes and 196 early votes.

District 36 is in northeastern Sussex County, going from roughly Milford in the north to just north of Georgetown in the south, and from Route 13 in the west to the Delaware Bay in the east.

On his campaign website, Smith says he works remotely as an IT professional in electronic medical record systems.

On his personal website, Shupe says he founded Milford LIVE, Delaware LIVE, Fur Baby Pet Resort and The Farmacy Market.

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