Efforts for Full Recount in Minnesota’s GOP Primary
Mike Lindell, founder of MyPillow and known supporter of Trump, has proposed funding a complete recount of Minnesota’s GOP primary for governor, a contest he lost by 11 percentage points. He has already assembled a team to investigate the election, which was won by state House Speaker Lisa Demuth on August 11.
Lindell contacted the Minnesota secretary of state to obtain an estimate for the recount cost. According to Lauren Bethke, the secretary of state’s general counsel, this would involve a hand recount and audit priced at approximately $825,000.
Lindell anticipates total expenses reaching “upwards of $1 million” due to additional actions. These include hiring his own team to scrutinize the race, an expenditure he is willing to cover.
Recount Request Process
As of Wednesday, the secretary of state’s office had not received an official recount request. Bethke’s letter outlined that Lindell must submit a recount request accompanied by “a bond, cash or surety” for the estimated cost by Monday to proceed.
Lindell plans to personally submit the official request on Monday. He is awaiting confirmation on where each county will conduct its recount. This is part of his strategy to deploy designated observers at the sites to monitor the process.
Claims of Irregularities and Legal Battles
Lindell released a statement claiming his team discovered several “irregularities” in election data. He attributes these irregularities to electronic voting machines.
Despite backing from former President Donald Trump during the primary, Lindell faces multiple lawsuits from voting machine companies for baseless allegations concerning the 2020 election. Earlier this year, a federal judge mandated Lindell to pay Smartmatic USA Corp., a voting machine company, $56,369 following a defamation suit. Refusal to pay led to a daily penalty of $500, accumulating additional costs.
His attorneys have requested to file a motion to reconsider the ruling by U.S. District Judge Jeffrey Bryan, citing “newly available evidence” via redacted documents concerning election security released on July 16 by Trump. However, these documents did not demonstrate evidence of significant voter fraud in the 2020 election.
Lindell insisted that these documents substantiate his fraud claims, and said his challenge against Smartmatic will continue, regardless of the judge’s decision on the reconsideration.
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