Bernie Sanders to ask for 'partial recanvass' in Iowa after new results keep Buttigieg's delegate lead


The Iowa Democratic Party finished its review Sunday of 95 precincts from last Monday's caucuses, and the final results were the same: former Mayor Pete Buttigieg beat Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) by 0.1 percent in state delegates, giving Buttigieg 14 state delegate equivalents, Sanders 12, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) eight, former Vice President Joe Biden six, and Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) one SDE. Candidates have until Monday at 1 p.m. to request a final review, and the Sanders campaign said it will seek a "partial recanvass" of 20 to 30 Iowa precincts. A recanvass is not a recount but a cross-check of the vote numbers against paper records.
The Iowa Democratic caucuses were a mess, and the Democratic National Committee is reconsidering Iowa's first-in-the-nation voting status, chairman Tom Perez said on CNN Sunday. Sanders had the most support overall and claimed a popular victory in the caucuses, but due to how the Iowa Democratic Party apportions delegates, Buttigieg has maintained a consistent lead in the category traditionally used to name the winner. The Associated Press has declined to name a winner of the Iowa caucuses, citing accuracy concerns and the likelihood of revisions.
The voting records submitted by Iowa caucus precinct chairs had some obvious errors, but the IDP says it can't legally change any mathematical errors because that would amount to illegal vote tampering. Perez said he's "mad as hell" about Iowa's mistakes and predicted there would be "a further conversation about whether or not state parties should be running elections."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.
-
Zohran Mamdani: the young progressive likely to be New York City's next mayor
In The Spotlight The policies and experience that led to his meteoric rise
-
The best film reboots of all time
The Week Recommends Creativity and imagination are often required to breathe fresh life into old material
-
'More must be done'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
-
The last words and final moments of 40 presidents
The Explainer Some are eloquent quotes worthy of the holders of the highest office in the nation, and others... aren't
-
Senate advances GOP bill that costs more, cuts more
Speed Read The bill would make giant cuts to Medicaid and food stamps, leaving 11.8 million fewer people with health coverage
-
Canadian man dies in ICE custody
Speed Read A Canadian citizen with permanent US residency died at a federal detention center in Miami
-
GOP races to revise megabill after Senate rulings
Speed Read A Senate parliamentarian ruled that several changes to Medicaid included in Trump's "One Big Beautiful Bill" were not permissible
-
Supreme Court lets states ax Planned Parenthood funds
Speed Read The court ruled that Planned Parenthood cannot sue South Carolina over the state's effort to deny it funding
-
Trump plans Iran talks, insists nuke threat gone
Speed Read 'The war is done' and 'we destroyed the nuclear,' said President Trump
-
Trump embraces NATO after budget vow, charm offensive
Speed Read The president reversed course on his longstanding skepticism of the trans-Atlantic military alliance
-
Trump judge pick told DOJ to defy courts, lawyer says
Speed Read Emil Bove, a top Justice Department official nominated by Trump for a lifetime seat, stands accused of encouraging government lawyers to mislead the courts and defy judicial orders