Sandoval County continues ballot battle

SANDOVAL COUNTY, N.M. (KRQE) - Three weeks after the election and the battle over election results continued Tuesday in Sandoval County.
    
Sandoval County is where voters waited over five hours to cast ballots on election night.
    
Tuesday representatives from both the democratic and republican parties are still combing over ballots.
    
Especially in races that are still neck and neck.
    
They went over these ballots for hours and hours Tuesday.
    
Late Tuesday afternoon the county attorney tells me two candidates filed paperwork requesting an official recount.

But there was already some counting and debating going on.
    
Representatives from both parties combed over 900 ballots from Rio Rancho during Tuesday’s ballot inspection.
    
This was not an official count.
    
They argued over who could touch the ballots, if they could be put into piles and what lawyers could offer advice during the inspection.
    
They also counted ballots.
    
Republican representatives saying that was within their rights of Tuesday’s inspection.

“We were definitely counting ballots from voting convenience center number two,” Republican representative Rod Adair said.

Representatives for the Democratic party question that.

“There was a little bit of sorting of ballots today by Senator Adair…we did count,” Democratic representative Sisto Abeyta said.
    
The two candidates who are on the paperwork for a recount are state senate candidate David Doyle.
    
The secretary of state says he is 144 votes behind Democrat John Sapien.
    
The Republican candidate for county clerk is also a part of this.
    
More than 300 votes separate that race.
    
The tight races did not qualify for an automatic recount.
    
The secretary of state's office says if the two candidates want that they will have to pay for it.