By Matt Kelley (Radio Iowa)
A full recount is being requested in all 20 southeastern Iowa counties in the closely-watched 1st District Congressional race.
Nine days after the election, Iowans in the district still don’t know exactly who will represent them in the U.S. House next year, but we’re closer to a decision.
The Democratic challenger, Christina Bohannan has requested the recount, across the district, as permitted by Iowa law.
Following Wednesday’s canvass, the total vote tally didn’t change much. Incumbent Republican Mariannette Miller-Meeks still has about an 800-vote lead out of more than 414,000 votes cast.
Miller-Meeks claimed victory more than a week ago, but Bohannan didn’t concede, given the tight race.
In calling for the recount, Bohannan’s campaign released a statement saying, “We have full trust in this process and will accept the results regardless of the outcome.”
This year’s race was a rematch of the 2022 election, which Bohannan lost to Miller-Meeks by about 20,000 votes.
Bohannan, of Iowa City, is a law professor at the University of Iowa.
Miller-Meeks, an ophthalmologist and Army veteran from Davenport, is seeking her third term. She was first elected to the House in 2020 in an even-closer race, beating out Democrat Rita Hart by just six votes.
