Andrew Gillum, the mayor of Tallahassee and Democratic nominee for Florida governor, has withdrawn his Election Day concession to opponent and hero to racists, Ron DeSantis. That’s right: Gillum is back in the race.
"I am replacing my words of concession with an uncompromised and unapologetic call we count every single vote," Gillum announced on Twitter Saturday, as well as in a press conference.
How is this possible? Florida is doing a recount of votes. Earlier today, Ken Detzner, Florida’s Secretary of State, announced that the state was doing a recount via machine. This recount applies to races across the state.
The recount will also apply to the Senate race between Republican Governor Rick Scott and Democratic Senator, Bill Nelson. A very slim margin also looms over the race between Nikki Fried, the Democratic agriculture commissioner, and Republican Matt Caldwell.
How did this recount come about? Here’s how it works in Florida (remember, this process varies by state). Since margins came in at under .5 percent in all three instances, all votes will be recounted by machine. This part of the process has to be wrapped up by Thursday, at 3 p.m.
Additionally, if races come within a .25 percent margin, those votes trigger a recount by hand. As of now, the Senate and agriculture commissioner races both fall within that .25 percent mark.
This is big news, and not just for Florida constituents. Georgia and Arizona are also fighting to get every vote counted, with particular attention on Stacey Abrams, who has yet to concede to former Secretary of State Brian Kemp in Georgia’s battle for governor. Seeing what can happen in one state, even when policies are different, is definitely a source of motivation to keep fighting for voter transparency everywhere.
It’s also a big deal on a symbolic level, as President Donald Trump seems to think not every vote matters, as shown by his snark on Twitter:
Whether the votes come in Republican, Democrat, or other, they all matter. And they all deserve to be counted.
Do you believe every vote counts? Join us as we support the Florida recount!