SYRACUSE -- The attorneys are on retainer and the votes are impounded - now the recounting is about to begin in the too close to call race to represent New York's 25th Congressional District.
Friday afternoon at 2:00 pm the Monroe County Board of Elections will be the first to begin recanvassing its ballots. After the first count Republican challenger Ann Marie Buerkle held a lead of 659 votes over freshman incumbent Democrat Dan Maffei.
Late Thursday afternoon Buerkle issued a statement using the word "won" for the first time. She now has legal help from the national Republican Party in the effort to make sure all votes are correctly counted.
Her campaign sent out this carefully crafted comment: "Our lead in the initial vote count reflects what we have said throughout this campaign -that the people of Upstate New York want to reign in the excesses of the last two years and regain their voice in Washington. I am pleased to have won the initial count. We are confident that when all eligible absentee ballots are counted - that we will remain ahead - and victorious.Our success in this campaign is due in large part to the tireless efforts on the part of our volunteers. We still need their help and support as the process continues."
On the Democratic side, Maffei campaign spokesperson Abigail Gardner said, "Nobody should be counting their chickens before they're hatched." Gardner said the campaign's crunching of the numbers makes them confident that the Democrat will win a second term when all votes are counted.
Attorneys are also on standby to assist in the recanvassing and counting of absentee ballots. The Maffei camp also is looking at provisional ballots which they feel are more likely to include voters who move more often and live in urban areas instead of more stable suburban and rural districts that favor Republicans.
The balance of the absentee ballots are from Onondaga County where Maffei handily defeated Buerkle.
Monroe County begins recanvassing on Friday. Onondaga, Cayuga and Wayne counties are scheduled to begin recanvassing at the beginning of next week.
