North Carolina Republican Gov. Pat McCrory on Tuesday officially requested a recount of votes from the Nov. 8 election.
The gubernatorial race between McCrory and his Democratic challenger, Attorney General Roy Cooper, is still undecided two weeks after Election Day.
The North Carolina State Board of Election has counted all ballots from all 2,704 precincts and McCrory trails Cooper by roughly 6,200 votes.
In his letter to the Board of Elections, the Republican incumbent says he is “statutorily entitled to a recount” since the difference is less than 10,000 votes.
“With serious concerns of potential voter fraud emerging across the state, it is becoming more apparent that a thorough recount is one way the people of North Carolina can have confidence in the results, process and system,” McCrory wrote.
McCrory’s apparent loss has been blamed on his support for a state law mandating transgender people use the public restroom that corresponds with their birth gender. The law caused businesses and entertainers to pull out of planned agreements with North Carolina.
Cooper has already claimed victory over McCrory.
“This is nothing but a last-ditch effort from Gov. McCrory to delay and deny the results of this election,” Cooper campaign manager Trey Nix said in a statement. “Roy Cooper leads by 8,569 votes — a number that is growing daily as counties finalize election results. We are confident that a recount will do nothing to change the fact that Roy Cooper has won this election.”
