Paula Copenhaver filed a petition for a recount and to contest the election in the closely watched primary race between her and incumbent state Sen. Spencer Deery (R-West Lafayette) for his Senate District 23 seat.
Last week, after the last remaining provisional ballots were counted, preliminary results showed Deery to be the winner with only three votes over Copenhaver.
Copenhaver said in a written statement Monday that she is pursuing the challenge to ensure "that legal votes are counted, while illegal votes are not."
“After carefully reviewing the available information, we have obtained documented evidence of illegal voting by unqualified voters in the Senate District 23 Republican Primary,” Copenhaver said in the statement..
As counties were finalizing election results last week and tallying provisional ballots, Copenhaver earned two additional votes while Deery only earned one.
The race drew national attention this year after Copenhaver was endorsed by President Trump, who vowed to unseat Deery and six other Senate Republicans who voted against redistricting last year. Five of the incumbents were beaten by Trump-backed candidates.
Now the Indiana Recount Commission will oversee the recount process. The commission is chaired by Indiana Secretary of State Diego Morales and is made up of members representing Indiana’s Republican and Democratic parties.
Rep. Ed DeLaney (D-Indianapolis) has called on Morales to recuse himself from the commission if the District 23 race goes to a recount due to his ties to Turning Point USA. The group's political arm, Turning Point Action, endorsed Copenhaver.
The district covers parts of Tippecanoe, Montgomery, Vermillion, Parke, Warren and Fountain counties.
Democrat David Sanders, a Purdue University professor, was unopposed in the primary for the party's nomination. He, along with independent candidate Joshua Brant, will face the winner in November.
Contact Government Reporter Caroline Beck at cbeck@wfyi.org.
