(The Center Square) – More than 14,000 absentee and provisional ballots remain outstanding in an Ohio U.S. House race that remains too close to call Tuesday.
Incumbent Democrat Marcy Kaptur, a four-decade House veteran and the chamber’s longest-serving woman, led Republican state Rep. Derrick Merrin by 1,139 votes in the Toledo-area district and declared victory nearly a week ago.
Local election officials have until Nov. 20 to report outstanding ballots to the secretary of state.
DecisionDesk has called the race for Kaptur, but no other major outlets have made the same call.
Merrin, endorsed by President-elect Donald Trump, has not conceded and has not issued a statement since posting on social media Wednesday.
“Our team is working to ensure every vote is properly counted so an accurate tally can be determined,” Merrin said on X a day after Election Day. “There are thousands of provisional ballots left to be counted & absentee ballots still to be delivered.”
Races with a margin of 0.5% or closer trigger an automatic recount in Ohio.
Ohio’s 9th Congressional District covers several counties in the Toledo area.
Secretary of State Frank LaRose said last week there were 137,879 provisional ballots cast statewide.
As reported by The Center Square, California has nearly 5 million uncounted ballots a week after the election – ballots that could determine whether Republicans have a trifecta in the federal government.
The Associated Press has called 205 House races for Democrats and 214 for Republicans, leaving both parties short of the 218 required for a House majority. With Republicans winning a majority of the Senate and winning both the Electoral College and popular vote for the presidency, maintaining control of the House would provide a broad mandate for Republican governing priorities.
There are eight remaining uncalled House races in California, three of which currently favor Republicans and five for Democrats.
A Kaptur win would push Democrats to 206 seats, and if Democrats sweep all eight of those races in California, both parties would hold 214 seats.
