ST. LOUIS – A court order will authorize a recount of August primary election results for the Democratic nomination of St. Louis City Sheriff.
Vernon Betts, the active St. Louis City Sheriff, formally requested a recount of primary election results last week. The St. Louis Board of Election Commissioners will conduct an “automatic machine recount” of votes on Sept. 3, according to a Friday court order.
The St. Louis Board of Election Commissioners published official election results from the Aug. 6, 2024 primary election on Aug. 19, which showed that Betts narrowly lost to challenger Alfred Montgomery.
In a petition filed last week, Betts cited that he was eligible for a recount based on Missouri statutes, which enable any candidate “defeated by less than one percent of the votes cast for the office” to request a recount.
According to the official pre-recount election results, Betts received 22,604 votes and Montgomery received 22,860 votes. It’s a difference of less than 300 votes. In percentages, Montgomery has a 0.56% edge over Betts.
Betts has held the office of St. Louis City Sheriff on the Democratic ticket since since January 1, 2017. In the August 2020 primary, Betts defeated Montgomery with 61% to 27% advantage in election results.
No Republican candidates ran for the office of St. Louis City Sheriff. Whoever emerges from the recount will face independent candidate Joy Denise Dabney for the office in the Nov. 5, 2024 election.
