1 month ago
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FRESNO, Calif. (KSEE) - In the days and weeks pursuing the November 2024 election, galore voters successful the Merced County country were near wondering who would correspond them successful the House of Representatives in Washington, D.C.
As contention aft contention continued to person projected winners, the much than 750,000 radical surviving successful California's 13th Congressional District remained unsure if incumbent Republican Congressman John Duarte would caput backmost to Capitol Hill, oregon if Democrat challenger Adam Gray would correspond them instead.
As the days ticked by, and the deadline to certify the contention was conscionable 1 time away, present Congressman Adam Gray was declared the victor by a borderline of lone 187 votes.
This marked the adjacent of the past House contention successful the federation to beryllium called aft the 2024 election, a captious contention with specified a slim bulk successful the House of Representatives.
"At the extremity of the day, it's the top ideology connected earth, we unrecorded in, and it's an grant and privilege to enactment successful elections," Congressman Adam Gray said.
But digging deeper, voters were watching a roller coaster of ballot tallies dilatory dripping from respective counties that marque up California's 13th Congressional District.
Fresno County Clerk and Registrar of Voters James Kus said the legislature plays a relation successful erstwhile voters find retired who won each respective race, with certification time connected Dec. 3 being the deadline crossed the authorities of California.
"In November of 2024, the legislature said certification is going to beryllium connected this time for each counties, adjacent if you decorativeness 2 weeks earlier that date, you person to enactment unfastened for cures, and galore counties did that," Kus said.
As for the closeness of the race, Kus said that it is really by design. Kus pointed to the redistricting process that plays retired for legislature districts aft each census, and said elections thin to beryllium person the sooner they instrumentality spot pursuing the implementation of caller maps.
"So this, 2022, 2024, I deliberation we saw much adjacent races than we volition spot successful 28 and 30, and we determination farther away, populations person moved astir a small spot and settled in, and radical bash it, they settee successful adjacent to radical similar themselves," Kus said.
But not everyone is excited with however voters look to beryllium near successful the acheronian for days and weeks portion ballots are counted. Some members of the State Legislature accidental they privation to spot changes to ballot counting to let for a much transparent predetermination process.
State Assemblyman David Tangipa, who is simply a subordinate of the Assembly Election Committee, says he'd similar to spot ballots counted sooner starring up to predetermination day.
"I deliberation there's a batch of radical who consciousness either weird oregon it conscionable doesn't marque america consciousness comfy with the results of the predetermination erstwhile we person the predetermination time and past for 30 days, we don't cognize who won, who didn't win, that idiosyncratic could beryllium successful the pb for 2 weeks and past each of a abrupt astatine the end, they're down by 150 votes and it's a certified election," Tangipa said.
Elected leaders and experts constituent to a fig of obstacles and procedures related to ballot counting that marque balancing transparency with integrity and information much hard oregon time-consuming.
