ORLANDO, Fla. — The Associated Press has called Florida’s governor race for Republican Byron Donalds, but the close results may leave voters wondering whether a recount is required.
Based on the reported totals, the race is outside Florida’s automatic recount threshold.
Follow Channel 9’s complete Florida election results and coverage.
How close is the governor’s race?
Reported totals showed Donalds with 4,065,423 votes and Democrat David Jolly with 3,963,591 votes.
That gives Donalds a lead of 101,832 votes, or about 1.25 percentage points of the 8,131,644 votes reported across all candidates.
The results display rounded Donalds’ share to 50% and Jolly’s to 49%. Recount calculations use the actual vote totals rather than those rounded percentages.
These figures are a snapshot of unofficial results and may change as additional ballots are counted.
What triggers an automatic recount in Florida?
Florida requires a machine recount when the first set of unofficial returns shows a margin of 0.5 percentage points or less of the total votes cast in the contest.
The secretary of state orders recounts for statewide races, according to the Florida Division of Elections’ recount timeline.
If the margin after a machine recount is 0.25 percentage points or less, a manual recount of overvotes and undervotes is generally required under Florida law.
Does Donalds’ current lead meet that threshold?
No. His approximately 1.25-percentage-point lead is above the 0.5-percentage-point threshold.
At the reported total of 8,131,644 votes, a half-percentage-point margin would be about 40,658 votes. Donalds’ lead was 101,832 votes.
The recount determination depends on the required unofficial returns, rather than an election-night snapshot.
Does 98% of precincts reporting mean counting is almost finished?
The results feed listed 5,497 of 5,634 precincts reporting, or about 98%.
That percentage measures precinct reporting. It does not establish that 98% of all ballots have been counted. The feed also noted that precinct totals do not include outstanding absentee votes.
Are the results final?
No. An AP race call is a projection of the winner, separate from the state’s certification process.
Election results remain unofficial until certified.
Watch Channel 9’s election coverage live.
See results below
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