MADISON, Wis. — Republican Senate challenger Eric Hovde is taking his time to decide his next steps following last week’s election. Senator Tammy Baldwin was declared the winner on November 6 by a margin of just under 29,000 votes.
In a statement posted to X, Hovde says that once the Wisconsin Elections Commission finalizes its canvass of the ballots from the November 5 election and all of the final information is available, “and all options are reviewed, I will announce my decision on how I will proceed”.
Many people have reached out to me with concerns about the voting inconsistencies we experienced on Election Day. Here are my thoughts: pic.twitter.com/zDvaeHaizw
— Eric Hovde (@EricHovde) November 12, 2024
Hovde stated he was “shocked” as the results came in on Election night:
“At 1 a.m., I was receiving calls of congratulations, and based on the models, it appeared that I would win the Senate race. Then at 4 a.m., Milwaukee reported approximately 108,000 absentee ballots with Senator Baldwin receiving nearly 90% of those ballots”.
“While I’m deeply concerned, asking for a recount is a serious decision that requires careful consideration,” he said. “Further, there are meaningful limits on a recount because they don’t look at the integrity of a ballot”.
Senator Baldwin refuted Hovde’s claims in a response on X:
Eric Hovde is spreading lies from the darkest corners of the internet to undercut our free and fair elections.
— Tammy Baldwin (@tammybaldwin) November 12, 2024
Wisconsin voters made their voices heard. It's time for Hovde to stop this disgusting attack on our democracy and concede.
The Wisconsin Elections Commission posted its guidelines for the recall procedure for all races on November 1.
The Milwaukee Election Commission responded to Hovde’s claims:
The Milwaukee Election Commission (MEC) unequivocally refutes Eric Hovde’s baseless claims regarding the integrity of our election process. Every aspect of the MEC’s operations was conducted with transparency and in strict adherence to established laws and procedures. It is both expected and routine that absentee ballots—over 100,000 in this case—are counted and reported in the late hours of Election Night due to Wisconsin’s high voter turnout and the rigorous verification standards the MEC upholds. Unlike states led by both Republicans and Democrats that permit absentee ballots to be processed ahead of Election Day, Wisconsin does not, which can result in the reporting of large numbers of absentee ballots late at night. The state of Wisconsin proudly allows same-day voter registration, and this historic election saw record-breaking turnout as many newly registered voters exercised their right to support their preferred candidates. The MEC celebrates the dedication of Milwaukee residents to participate in the democratic process and is fully confident that Mr. Hovde’s accusations lack any merit. Milwaukee voters can rest assured: the MEC conducted a fair, accurate, and secure election that fully protects voter rights and preserves the democratic process.
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