Businessman Mike Lindell, founder of My Pillow and a former Republican candidate for Minnesota governor, has announced plans to privately fund a full statewide hand recount and audit of the state’s Aug. 11 GOP primary election. Lindell lost the primary to state House Speaker Lisa Demuth by 11 percentage points, a margin significantly larger than the 0.25% threshold required to trigger an automatic recount in Minnesota.
Lindell’s campaign stated in a press release that the effort would be the largest privately funded statewide paper-ballot recount and audit in U.S. history, with an estimated cost of $825,000 based on a letter from the Minnesota secretary of state’s office. The recount must be requested by Monday, accompanied by a bond, cash, or surety for the estimated amount.
Lindell has not yet submitted an official recount request, but he told NBC News he plans to personally deliver the request to the secretary of state’s office. The recount would involve hand-counting every paper ballot in the state, with Lindell’s team sending observers to oversee the process in each county.
Concerns Raised Over Voting Process
Lindell’s decision follows his repeated claims of irregularities in the election data, which he alleges stem from the use of electronic voting machines. In a news release, he cited several issues, including:
- Counties reporting more votes than were cast
- Vote totals that moved backward during reporting
- Unusual synchronized vote totals across all seven Republican candidates in the primary
The Minnesota secretary of state’s office confirmed the estimated cost of the recount in a letter to Lindell but noted that an official request had not yet been received. The office also stated it was still determining where each county would conduct the recount.
Lindell’s Political and Legal Background
Lindell, a prominent ally of former President Donald Trump, stepped down as CEO of My Pillow in early August to focus on his gubernatorial campaign. His loss in the primary marked a significant setback in his political ambitions. Lindell has long promoted debunked conspiracy theories about the 2020 election, including claims that voting machines were rigged to manipulate outcomes.
His allegations have led to legal consequences, including a $1.3 billion defamation lawsuit from Dominion Voting Systems (now Liberty Vote), which was settled in July for an undisclosed sum. Lindell has also faced lawsuits from other voting machine companies, though details of those cases were not included in the provided sources.
Next Steps and Legal Requirements
To proceed with the recount, Lindell must submit a formal request to the Minnesota secretary of state’s office by Monday, accompanied by payment or a bond covering the estimated $825,000 cost. The secretary of state’s general counsel, Lauren Bethke, outlined these requirements in a letter to Lindell.
Lindell has indicated he is prepared to cover additional costs, including hiring his own team to investigate the race, which he estimates could bring the total expense to “upwards of $1 million.” He has also stated that he intends to send designated observers to each county’s recount site to ensure transparency.
Reactions and Broader Context
The Minnesota secretary of state’s office has not publicly commented on Lindell’s allegations of irregularities but confirmed that the state’s election laws allow candidates to request a full hand recount and audit at their own expense. The office emphasized that an official request must be submitted to initiate the process.
Lindell’s recount effort comes amid ongoing debates over election integrity and the use of electronic voting machines in the U.S. His campaign has framed the recount as a step toward eliminating electronic voting machines, which he alleges are vulnerable to manipulation. However, no evidence has been presented to support these claims in the context of the Minnesota primary.
The recount, if completed, would provide a definitive count of the votes cast in the primary, though it is unlikely to alter the outcome given the 11-point margin of Lindell’s loss. The process is expected to take several weeks, depending on the number of ballots and the resources allocated to the effort.