Under pressure, Kris Kobach agrees to recuse himself from Kansas GOP gubernatorial primary vote count

Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach (R) announced on Thursday night he will recuse himself from vote-counting in the state's GOP gubernatorial primary.

Kobach ran in the primary against incumbent Gov. Jeff Colyer (R), and only 91 votes separate the two. Colyer released a letter on Thursday night, calling on Kobach to recuse himself after several counties notified him that the secretary of state's website has inaccurate vote tallies. "We've received countless reports that voters experienced issues when they voted on Tuesday," Colyer campaign spokesman Kendall Marr told the Kansas City Star. "Many Colyer voters had difficulties finding his name on the ballot, were forced to vote on provisional ballots, or were turned away outright for unknown reasons."

Kobach said on Wednesday night he wouldn't recuse himself, and he told CNN's Chris Cuomo on Thursday "there's really no point" in stepping aside, "because the secretary of state actually has no role in the counting of provisional ballots or any recount. But I said if my opponent wishes me to, I'd be happy to." The move, he added, is "purely symbolic."

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