We confess: like many covering Super Tuesday 2, we too eventually decided to go to bed in the early hours after watching the Missouri election results stall at 99 percent for what seemed like hours, with Donald Trump and Ted Cruz separated by a margin of less than 1 percent.
It wasn’t until mid-afternoon Wednesday that Trump tweeted a big thank you to Missouri for handing him another victory.
Wow, just won Missouri!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 16, 2016
Thank you, Missouri! #Trump2016 pic.twitter.com/iOzGtcBbia
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 16, 2016
Passengers on the Trump Train are ready to roll again.
Whoop whoop!!!!
Thank you MISSOURI!
You are AWESOME!#Trump2016#MakeAmericaGreatAgain https://t.co/EYce3dVIKM— Linda Suhler, PhD (@LindaSuhler) March 16, 2016
At least one tweeter last night wondered if the delay was due to Missouri election officials looking for hanging chads. A recount might be in the cards, though, if either of the losing candidates decides to pursue it.
"Under Missouri law, a candidate who loses by less than 0.5% of all votes cast can seek a recount."https://t.co/ZfGL9QvMrQ
— Frank Luntz (@FrankLuntz) March 16, 2016
How thin is razor-thin? As of this morning, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported these numbers, noting that they did not take into account Kansas City absentee ballots.
With all precincts reporting, Republican Donald Trump defeated Ted Cruz by less than one-half of 1 percent, or 1,726 votes, according to the Missouri secretary of state’s office.
Democrat Hillary Clinton’s margin was even closer. Clinton also defeated Bernie Sanders by less than one-half of 1 percent, or 1,531 votes, the office reported.
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OK, that’s close.
JUST IN: Ted Cruz and Bernie Sanders considering recounts in Missouri primary https://t.co/OkNYH2v4Fa pic.twitter.com/Qg3v1xrXPZ
— The Hill (@thehill) March 16, 2016
I hope Bernie Sanders request for a recount in Missouri. He lost by 0.2%, that's crazy
— Dolemite (@TalkofSTL) March 16, 2016
The number of and manner in which delegates are awarded in Missouri suggest that little more than bragging rights are at stake, and The Hill reports that a member of the Sanders camp says the campaign has “no plans to challenge anything.” Reuters, however, reports that the Sanders campaign told reporters in a conference call that Sanders will not rule out the possibility of requesting a recount.
https://twitter.com/LilPalmtopTiger/status/710218930602827776
Given Hillary & Bernie are allocated equal number of delegates in MO, demanding a recount makes no sense. But for Cruz, its 20-5. Recount?
— (((DailyEx ??????????))) (@dailyexception) March 16, 2016
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