Ron DeSantis calls election ‘clear and unambiguous’ ahead of recount

Republican Ron DeSantis said he is moving forward with his transition into the Governor’s Mansion, even after Democratic opponent Andrew Gillum withdrew his concession from Tuesday’s election.

“With the election behind us, it’s now time to come together as a state as we prepare to serve all Floridians,” DeSantis said in a video statement (below).

“Since Tuesday night, that is what I have been doing and that is what I will continue to do in the days and weeks ahead as I prepare to take office as the 46^th Governor of the State of Florida.”

A completed tabulation of votes statewide shows DeSantis holding a 33,684-vote lead over Gillum. That’s 0.41 percent of more than 8.2 million votes cast.

Florida law requires an automatic machine recount of the election should the margin between candidates full below 0.5 percent.

Gillum on Saturday held a press conference during which he pulled back a concession to DeSantis made Tuesday night.

“Since that time, more information has come in,” Gillum told reporters.

Secretary of State Ken Detzner earlier on Saturday ordered a recount for the race.

DeSantis did not mention Gillum in his statement, and certainly didn’t go so far as Republican Senate candidate Rick Scott’s campaign did today in asking Democratic opponent Bill Nelson to forgo a recount.

But the Governor-elect did call the results of the election “clear and unambiguous, just as they were on Election night.”

“I am honored by the trust that Floridians have placed in me to serve as your next governor,” DeSantis said.

He also did not raise issues with voting irregularities in Democratic Broward and Palm Beach counties, something that has led to legal back-and-forth between Nelson and which prompted a lawsuit by Republican Agriculture Commissioner candidate Matt Calwell, who trails Democrat Nikki Fried right now, to file a lawsuit against the elections officials.

But DeSantis certainly suggested his campaign would be paying attention to any vote-counting proceedings.

“I want to express my appreciation to the supervisors, the canvassing boards, and the staffs for working hard to ensure that all lawful votes are counted in this election,” DeSantis said.

“It is important that everyone involved in the election process strictly adhere to the rule of law which is the foundation for our nation.”

DeSantis named a transition team earlier this week. They are still working, he stressed.

“Since the election a few days ago, we have begun our transition efforts to build an administration that can secure Florida’s future,” DeSantis said.