Posted August 8, 2014
Opponents of Missouri’s Right to Farm constitutional amendment were weighing a recount request, after the measure appeared to pass by the slimmest of margins, according to a Springfield News Leader article by the Associated Press. The New York Times also published an article available here.
The unofficial election tally revealed that almost 1 million votes were cast and Amendment 1 was carried by just over 2,500 votes with a margin of 0.2 percent. The measure was favored in most rural counties, with opposing areas in St. Louis, Kansas City, Springfield and Columbia.
Missouri law allows for a recount if the victory margin is 0.5 percent or less, however, the losing side must request the recount. The request can not be made until the vote is certified, which could take up to three weeks, Missouri Secretary of State spokesman Kevin Flannery said.
Missouri Farmers Care, an umbrella organization of agricultural groups and corporations that supported the amendment, said that a recount was expected, according to The New York Times.
“We are confident that the winning vote will stand,” the group said in a Facebook post.
Executive Director Dan Kleinsorge blamed the Humane Society of the U.S. (HSUS) for an onslaught of TV ads that made the vote close, according to Springfield News Leader.
“I think a big part of the HSUS strategy was to confuse voters and get a ‘no’ vote that way,” Kleinsorge said. “The amendment is pretty straightforward and it’s a very positive thing.”
The secretary of state has until August 26 to certify the results, at which point a recount may be requested by anyone who opposed the measure, according to The New York Times.
For more information on Right to Farm laws and for a compilation of states’ Right to Farm statutes, please visit the National Agricultural Law Center’s website here.
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