The tightly contested race for Arizona's attorney general following a Thursday automatic recount has called the Democrat candidate the certified winner.
Democrat Kris Mayes led Abe Hamadeh, R-Ariz., by 280 votes out of more than 2.5 million following the recount. The gap is .01 percentage points, making it one of the closest contests in the state's history.
Earlier this month, Mayes had been leading by 511 votes, which triggered an automatic recount under Arizona law for attorney general contests.
The updated standing tightened Mayes lead by nearly half, although the judge did not specify during the hearing which county or counties adjusted results.
On Thursday, Hamadeh requested the judge to delay and retain the current attorney general, Republican Mark Brnovich, in office until "all issues are resolved." The judge rejected the motion.
Hamadeh cited Arizona's 1990 gubernatorial race when the sitting governor remained in office through March following the election until the successor was certified as the winner.
The delay occurred because the Arizona Constitution at the time required candidates to receive a majority of votes. No candidate attained a majority in the general election, so officials planned a runoff more than three months after Election Day as well as delaying the winner's certification.
The judge on Thursday stated that Mayes received the highest number of votes, so Arizona law instructs the judge to deliver a copy of the order to Democrat Secretary of State Katie Hobbs, who is now governor-elect. The statute instructs Hobbs to issue a certificate of election to Mayes.
"The results of the recount show that my opponent's lead has been cut by nearly half from 511 to 280. A shockingly high discrepancy," Hamadeh wrote on Twitter. "Again, a recount just puts the ballots in the machine again. My legal team will be assessing our options to make sure every vote is counted."
"My opponent gained 196 votes, I gained 427," he later wrote on Twitter. "The outcome of this election is uncertain."
Hamadeh formally contested the results following the state canvas. However, a judge threw it out on Friday, ruling that he did not prove his case of mistakes in the election process to have impacted the outcome.
Thursday's results also affirm Tom Horne's, R-Ariz., victory for superintendent of public instruction, although Democrat Kathy Hoffman conceded the race after trailing by approximately 9,000 votes in the earlier canvas. Horne added 221 votes from the recount.
A state legislative seat in the Phoenix area also went to an automatic recount after Liz Harris, R-Ariz., led Julie Willoughby, R-Ariz., by 270 votes. The updated count added five votes to Harris' victory.