Election officials in Johnson County, Kansas, began a manual hand‑count audit Monday, verifying six midterm races that were decided by less than 1% of the vote, according to KSHB. The audit matters to Kansas City area voters because the contests include the governor’s race and two statewide offices that shape policies affecting the metro region.
Kansas law requires a hand‑count when results fall within one percentage point. Secretary of State Scott Schwab ordered the review after the governor, secretary of state, attorney general, and Kansas House Districts 27 and 117 — all tied to Johnson County — posted margins under 1%, KSHB reported.
At the Johnson County Election Office in Olathe, bipartisan teams of one Democrat and one Republican are counting a sample of ballots from 10 % of the county’s precincts. Election Commissioner Connie Schmidt said the teams will double‑check roughly 125,000 ballots out of the 300,000 cast, describing the effort as “finding a needle in a haystack.” She noted that about 150‑160 election workers are involved.
The process is open to the public. Observer Wayne Bridges, who has worked at polling places, said he wanted to see the system in action and noted that “fifty people showing up makes a big difference.” Schmidt added that each audit box is tallied, then confirmed by the team lead before moving to the next box, and she hopes the counting will be finished by Tuesday night.
Wyandotte County began its own audit last week, using the same bipartisan hand‑count method. “It really is just a verification to make sure the tallies on election day are what they’re supposed to be,” Wyandotte Election Commissioner Michael Abbott said, KSHB noted.
Once Johnson County’s hand count is complete, the results will be sent to the secretary of state’s office. The county canvass is scheduled for 9 a.m. Friday, when provisional ballots are reviewed, and the canvass board will reconvene Monday at 9 a.m. to certify the final numbers.
What’s next: Kansas City residents can watch the audit in person at the Olathe election office or follow updates online. The certified results, expected by early next week, will determine the final winners of the governor’s race and other key statewide offices that affect the region’s schools, taxes and public safety.
