Sanders Campaign ‘Still Assessing’ Whether To Ask For Recount In Iowa

Democratic presidential candidate, Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt, speaks during a campaign event at Music Man Square, Wednesday, Jan. 27, 2016 in Mason City, Iowa. (AP Photo/Chris Carlson)
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Updated at 1:12 p.m.

A spokesman for Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) told the Associated Press on Tuesday morning that the campaign is “still assessing” whether it will ask for a recount of the Iowa Democratic caucus.

The comment from Sanders’ campaign follows reports from CNN and The Guardian that Sanders would like to see the final vote counts, but it’s not clear exactly what the campaign has asked for.

“I honestly don’t know what happened. I know there are some precincts that have still not reported. I can only hope and expect that the count will be honest,” Sanders told reporters aboard his early Tuesday morning flight to New Hampshire, according to The Guardian. “I have no idea. Did we win the popular vote? I don’t know, but as much information as possible should be made available.”

Clinton secured a narrow victory in the Iowa Democratic caucus, according to results published by the Iowa Democratic Party on Tuesday. After the final precinct reported its results, Clinton received 49.8 percent support and 700.59 delegates, and Sanders received 49.6 percent support and 696.82 delegates.

The Clinton campaign declared victory in Iowa earlier on Tuesday before the final precinct reported results, but Sanders has yet to concede.

When asked about reports that the Sanders campaign will study irregularities in the Iowa caucus votes on CNN Tuesday morning, Clinton spokesman Brian Fallon defended the caucus process.

“In the last two weeks leading up to last night’s caucus in Iowa, you saw a lot of unfounded allegations being thrown about by the Sanders campaign. I think that the process was conducted with complete and utter integrity. We’re confident in the results even with the outstanding precincts that they are still counting,” Fallon said. “There’s no way for Sen. Sanders to catch up. I think last night’s showing was a testament to the fact that there’s a high determination among Clinton supporters.”

According to The Hill, the Sanders campaign complained on Monday night that some caucus sites were understaffed and that the Iowa Democratic Party was relying on precinct captains from each campaign to report vote counts. But the party denied those claims, according to The Hill.

Clarification: The Des Moines Register reported slightly different delegate totals. We’ve updated with the official tally from the Iowa Democratic Party.

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