Recount laws in Florida
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An election recount is a process by which votes cast in an election are re-tabulated to verify the accuracy of the original results. Recounts typically occur in the event of a close margin of victory, following accusations of election fraud, or due to the possibility of administrative errors. Recounts can either occur automatically or be requested by a candidate or voters.
Florida law requires automatic recounts if a candidate or measure is defeated by less than 0.5% of the total votes cast. The state does not allow for requested recounts.
Summary of recount laws
The list below shows answers to common questions regarding recounts in Florida.[1][2]
- Does state law require automatic recounts?
- Yes, a machine recount occurs when the margin is less than or equal to 0.5% total votes for office. If the machine recount returns a margin of defeat less than or equal to 0.25% of total votes, a manual recount of over/under votes occurs.
- When must an automatic recount be completed?
- For the initial recount, the fifth day after a regularly-scheduled primary election and the ninth day after a general or special election.
- Can a recount be requested?
- Recounts may not be requested in this state.
- Who pays for a requested recount?
- Recounts may not be requested in this state.
- Is a refund available for requested recount costs?
- Not applicable. State law does not allow requested recounts.
- Can a partial recount be requested?
- No.
Florida recount procedures
Automatic recount procedures
Automatic recounts are required if a candidate or measure is defeated by less than 0.5% of the total votes cast. The initial recount is conducted using automatic tabulating equipment and consists of all ballots cast.[2] If the results of the initial recount show a new margin where a candidate or measure is defeated by less than 0.25% of the total votes cast, a second recount is conducted by hand. The second recount, if required, consists only of overvotes and undervotes. The second recount is not required if the total number of such votes is not large enough to change the outcome of the election.[3]
Below are the deadlines for recounts by stage and election type:[1]
Initial recount:
- Regularly-scheduled primary election: no later than 3:00 p.m. on the fifth day after the election.
- General/special elections: no later than 3:00 p.m. on the ninth day after the election.
Provisions regarding automatic recounts do not apply to presidential preference primaries and elections for political party executive committee members.[1]
Requested recount procedures
Florida does not allow requested recounts.
For more information about recount procedures in Florida, click here.
Florida voting equipment
- See also: Voting methods and equipment by state
Florida uses hand-marked paper ballots and ballot-marking devices.[4]
Noteworthy events
Florida's 20th Congressional District Democratic primary (2022)
Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick won the special Democratic primary for Florida's 20th Congressional District on November 2, 2021. Eleven candidates ran. The special election on January 11, 2022, filled the vacancy left by Alcee Hastings (D), who died on April 6, 2021.[5] Hastings had been in office since 1993. As of September, Inside Elections rated the special election Solid Democratic. Hastings was re-elected in 2020 with 79% of the vote.
Florida Secretary of State Laurel Lee (R) ordered a recount of votes on November 4. Cherfilus-McCormick was leading Dale Holness by three votes. Under Florida law, a machine recount is required if the initial election night result is within 0.5 percentage points. If the machine recount results in a margin within 0.25 percentage points, a manual recount occurs. Click here for more information. Cherfilus-McCormick maintained a lead of five votes after the recount and once overseas and military ballots were counted.[6] Holness filed two lawsuits in the end of November, and no judges took the cases up before the January 11, 2022, special election.[7] Click here for a timeline of events occurring in the aftermath of the election.
Florida gubernatorial election (2018)
Prior to the recount, Ron DeSantis (R) led Andrew Gillum (D) by a margin of 0.41 percent, about 36,000 votes. The recount was automatically initiated as required by state law. As a result of the recount, DeSantis maintained his 0.41 percent margin of victory, although his vote lead decreased to about 32,500.
U.S. Senate election in Florida (2018)
Prior to the recount, Rick Scott (R) led Bill Nelson by 0.14 percent, about 15,000 votes. The recount was automatically initiated as required by state law. As a result of the recount, Scott defeated Nelson by a 0.2 percent margin of victory, although his vote lead decreased to about 10,000.
Presidential vote in Florida (2000)
On election night, George W. Bush (R) led Al Gore (D) by 1,700 votes. The recount was automatically initiated as required by state law. The recount reduced Bush's lead to 317 votes, and Gore asked for a manual recount in four counties. Florida Secretary of State Katherine Harris certified results of that recount, giving Bush a 537-vote lead. Gore appealed to the Florida Supreme Court, which ruled in his favor and called for a statewide recount of "undervote" ballots. Bush appealed to the Supreme Court of the United States, which ordered the recount to be put on hold until it could hear arguments in the case. The Supreme Court ruled 5-4 in Bush v. Gore that there was not enough time for a solution to be put in place by the time the electoral college voted. Bush remained the certified winner in Florida, and Gore conceded the presidential election the next day.[8]
50-state overview of recount laws
The table below summarizes where state laws allow for automatic and requested recounts. Click "show" to view the table.
As of September 2025, state law in 48 states included a recount provision, automatic recounts are possible in 28 states, and requested recounts are possible in 43 states.
50-state overview of requested recounts
The table below summarizes how requested recounts are paid for and whether it is possible for candidates to request a partial recount. Click "show" to view the table.
As of September 2025, the requester of a recount pays for the recount in 23 states, the state pays in seven states, and in 11 states it depends on the circumstances of the election or the recount. In 27 states a refund may be available for a requested recount, in four states a refund depends on the circumstances of the recount, and in five states no refund is available. Requested recounts are not possible in the remaining 14 states. In 27 states a partial recount may be requested.
| State[11] | Who pays for a requested recount? | Refund available? | Can candidates request a partial recount? | Citation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | Requester | Yes | Yes | 16-20,21 |
| Alaska | State/Requester Depends on margin |
Yes | Yes | 20.430-490 |
| Arizona | No requested recounts | N/A | No | 16-661,249 |
| Arkansas | Requester | Yes | No | 7-5-319 |
| California | Requester | Yes | Yes | 15620-15634 |
| Colorado | Requester | Yes | No | 10.5-101-109 |
| Connecticut | No requested recounts | N/A | No | 9-445,6-311a |
| Delaware | State | N/A | Yes | 5702(C,E) |
| District of Columbia | Requester | Yes | Yes | 1-1001.11(a) |
| Florida | No requested recounts | N/A | No | 102.141,166 |
| Georgia | State | N/A | Yes | 21-2-495,499 |
| Hawaii | No requested recounts | N/A | No | 11-158 |
| Idaho | State/Requester Depends on margin |
Yes | Yes | 34-2301-2309 |
| Illinois | Requester | Maybe[12] | Yes | 5/22-9.1, 18 |
| Indiana | Requester | Yes | Yes | 3-12-11-1-10 |
| Iowa | State | N/A | No | 43.56 & 50.48 |
| Kansas | State/Requester Depends on margin |
Yes | Yes | 25-3107 |
| Kentucky | Requester | No | Yes | 120.017,095,185,250,280 |
| Louisiana | Requester | Yes | Yes | 18-1451 & 1453 |
| Maine | State/Requester Depends on margin |
Yes | No | 737-A |
| Maryland | State/Requester Depends on margin |
Yes | Yes | 12-101-107 |
| Massachusetts | State | N/A | Yes | 54:135,A,B |
| Michigan | Requester | Yes | Yes | 168.879-894 |
| Minnesota | State/Requester Depends on margin |
Yes | Yes | 204C.35-361 |
| Mississippi | No requested recounts | N/A | No | N/A |
| Missouri | Requester | Maybe[13] | No | 115.601 |
| Montana | State/Requester Depends on margin |
Maybe[14] | No | 13-16-201-11 |
| Nebraska | Requester | Yes | Yes | 32-1119,1121 |
| Nevada | Requester | Yes | No | 293.403-405 |
| New Hampshire | State/Requester Depends on election type[15] |
Varies[16] | No | 660:1-16 |
| New Jersey | Requester | Yes | Yes | 19:28-1,2,3 |
| New Mexico | Requester | Yes | Yes | 1-14-14 to 25 |
| New York | Unclear[17] | No | No | 9-208 |
| North Carolina | State | N/A | No | 163-182.7,182.7A |
| North Dakota | Requester | No | No | 16.1-16-01 |
| Ohio | Requester | Yes | Yes | 3515.01-072 |
| Oklahoma | Requester | Yes | Yes | 26-8-109 to 117 |
| Oregon | Requester | Yes | Yes | 258.006-300 |
| Pennsylvania | Requester | Yes | Yes | 3154g,3261-3 |
| Rhode Island | Unclear[18] | No | No | 17-19-37.1 |
| South Carolina | No requested recounts | N/A | No | 7-17-280 |
| South Dakota | State | N/A | Yes | 12-21-1 to 37 |
| Tennessee | No requested recounts | N/A | No | 2-17,18 |
| Texas | Requester | Yes | Yes | 211 to 216 |
| Utah | State/Requester Depends on requester[19] |
No | No | 20A-4-401 |
| Vermont | State | N/A | No | 17-51-2601,2602 |
| Virginia | State/Requester Depends on margin |
Yes | No | 8-24.2-800 to 802.3 |
| Washington | Requester | Yes | Yes | 29A.64 |
| West Virginia | Requester | Yes | Yes | 3-6-9 |
| Wisconsin | State/Requester Depends on margin |
Yes | Yes | 9.01 & 5.90 |
| Wyoming | Requester | Yes | No | 22-16-109 to 114 |
State legislation
The table below lists bills related to recounts introduced during (or carried over to) Florida's regular legislative session this year. The following information is included for each bill:
- State
- Bill number
- Official bill name or caption
- Most recent action date
- Legislative status
- Sponsor party
- Topics dealt with by the bill
Bills are organized by most recent action. The table displays up to 100 results. To view more bills, use the arrows in the upper-right corner. Clicking on a bill will open its page on Ballotpedia's Election Administration Legislation Tracker, which includes bill details and a summary.
See also
- Election recount laws and procedures in the 50 states
- Voting in Florida
- Florida
- Voting methods and equipment by state
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Florida Division of Elections, "Recount Procedure Summary," accessed April 9, 2024
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Florida Statutes, "County canvassing board; duties," accessed September 18, 2025
- ↑ Florida Statutes, "Manual recounts of overvotes and undervotes," accessed September 18, 2025
- ↑ Verified Voting, "The Verifier - Election Day Equipment - November 2026," accessed September 18, 2025
- ↑ The Hill, "Florida Rep. Alcee Hastings dead at 84," April 6, 2021
- ↑ NBC Miami, "Cherfilus-McCormick Named Apparent Winner of District 20 Democratic Primary," November 12, 2021
- ↑ The Washington Post, "Democrat Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick wins House seat in Florida special election," January 11, 2022
- ↑ National Constitution Center, "On this day, Bush v. Gore settles 2000 presidential race," December 12, 2018
- ↑ Verified Voting, "Arizona Recount Laws," accessed September 25, 2025
- ↑ A court may order a recount under Arizona law.
- ↑ This category encompasses instances where the state government pays for recounts and those states where counties pay.
- ↑ A recount alone cannot change the election results, but can be used to contest the election. At the end of that process, the court may choose not to levy costs against the prevailing party.
- ↑ Recounts occur as part of a contested election. A requester may be required to cover costs before the start of such an event. The court may choose to require the unsuccessful party in a contested election to cover the costs, which could involve a refund to the requester if he or she is the successful party.
- ↑ In the case of a court-ordered recount, candidates must pay, but will be refunded if the outcome changes. Regarding non-court-ordered recounts, state law does not mention whether the candidate is refunded in such a case.
- ↑ The state covers requested recounts of statewide constitutional amendments. The requester covers all other recounts.
- ↑ For local and county ballot measure elections, state law does not mention the possibility of a refund. For all other recounts, costs paid by the requester are refunded if the recount changes the election outcome.
- ↑ No mention in state law.
- ↑ No mention in state law.
- ↑ The state pays for candidate-requested recounts. The requester pays for voter-requested recounts of ballot measures.
