MacKay petitions for recount in close Cambridge primary

Evan MacKay initially appeared to win Tuesday, but results released later showed long-time state Representative Marjorie Decker received about 40 more votes.

A challenger who initially declared victory against state Representative Marjorie Decker of Cambridge following Tuesday’s primary election has filed a petition for a recount.

Evan MacKay, a graduate student and organizer who challenged Decker in the Democratic primary for the 25th Middlesex District, announced Friday that the “slim margin” between the candidates warrants a recount, according to their campaign.

The Cambridge Election Commission said they will recount the votes but did not announce a date or location for the recount, which must be completed by Sept. 14, The Boston Globe reported.

“A cornerstone of this campaign has always been that democracy happens in the daylight,” MacKay said in a statement. “With such a close margin, voters deserve to know with certainty the exact tally and that’s why I am requesting a recount, which we hope will be over quickly and make things clear.”

Election night confusion in Cambridge

MacKay reportedly declared victory at a party in Cambridge on primary night, saying “our movement has won this election,” the Globe reported.

The Cambridge Election Commission initially released results that showed MacKay won with 3,354 votes to Decker’s 3,314. The commission then met Wednesday afternoon to review provisional ballots and hand-count about 250 other ballots.

According to unofficial results on Wednesday, Decker ended up on top with 3,472 votes to MacKay’s 3,431, which is a margin of .58 percent.

In a statement on Sunday, Decker thanked the Cambridge Election Commission and said “we have confidence in their ability to count votes.”

“A recount is a tool of the democratic process so we welcome that and look forward to the outcome,” she said.

The ultimate winner won’t have a Republican challenger in November, so the results of the recount all but selects the district’s representative to the state legislature.