2020 has thrown many obstacles our way this year, and unfortunately the election cycle is no exception. This year’s results have been delayed due to the increase of mail-in ballets, which take longer to count than the poll votes. There’s much debate over voted fraud because of the number of mail-in votes, as some believe that it’s not the most secure way to vote. Although this is untrue, current U.S. President and Republic nominee, Donald Trump, has been very vocal about his skepticism regarding the votes. 

Trump’s stated that he wants a recount of the votes in Wisconsin, who’s voted in favor of the democratic party, due to his belief that voter fraud is occurring. This isn’t an unusual request, since recounts are often demanded in the case of tight elections, some recounts do happen automatically, however. Wisconsin is not one of those states, and Trump’s administration is the one who has requested a recount of their votes. 

So, what exactly is a recount? A recount is the reevaluation of votes in an election, and they can happen on a local and national level. It is rare to be requested but isn’t surprising for this election cycle. Wisconsin is a swing state, so it is key in winning the presidential election. A swing state is a state that doesn’t usually follow a pattern of voting Republican or Democrat, so its unpredictability has a big impact on the results. Being a swing state, the thought of a recount is worrying to some Americans, but it shouldn’t be. It is not likely to change the outcome of the result, as this doesn’t often occur when a recount is asked for. The Democratic party has won Wisconsin because of their current lead over the Republicans. The event of a recount also does not mean that there was any voter fraud involved. It merely means that the votes are being double-checked to ensure accuracy.  

It would take about four days to recount the votes, and this cannot happen until after the first count has finished. Individual states do have laws of when votes need to be finalized, but this shouldn’t be a problem. This is because Wisconsin’s end date is not until Dec. 1, so a problem won’t be seen there. Recounts rarely reveal a new winner, though. It usually just confirms the original count. Since it is unlikely that the recount will show new results, it is not likely to affect results, so unless Wisconsin somehow finds hidden votes for the Republican party, Biden will get the state. 

A question still lingers regarding the next U.S. president, but the final outcome of the election will not be known until December 1st at the latest. Again, due to the mail-in ballets, counting is more tedious. Many states have finished counting, but there are still some remaining. States that are still counting as of the morning of Nov. 6 are Alaska, Arizona, Maine, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina, and Pennsylvania. The end of this election cycle and unusually long voting process will come to a close soon. But, in the meantime, the talk of a recount shouldn’t be of concern. Story: by Kendall Unger. Information from nbcnews.com, ballotpedia.org, and fivethirtyeight.com.