# What happens when a candidate dies before a recount? **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [May 13, 2014, 12:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-when-a-candidate-dies-before-a-recount/688311 "2014-05-13T00:00:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![psychobunny](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/54ee81/32.png) [@psychobunny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/psychobunny)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2014, 12:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-when-a-candidate-dies-before-a-recount/688311/1 "2014-05-13T00:00:53Z")
I have been casually following Clay Aiken’s run for congress because frankly I want to see if he breaks into song. Apparently there was a virtual tie in the democratic primary and they are set for a recount. However, his opponent unfortunately fell downstairs and died (and I am horrible or watch way too much television because I can’t help thinking of Mr. Aiken as the evil genius who pushed him). In any case, do they do the recount? If it was within a certain percentage they were supposed to have a two-man runoff. Do they still have a run-off? ---
**Author:** ![Claverhouse](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/13edae/32.png) [@Claverhouse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Claverhouse)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2014, 1:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-when-a-candidate-dies-before-a-recount/688311/2 "2014-05-13T01:03:30Z")
Couldn’t the votes for the dead be written off ? Winner takes it all ? Anyway, elections would be greatly improved by having all the losers executed immediately after. That way you’d only get serious candidates, and the counts would get such exact scrutiny there’d be no dispute. ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2014, 2:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-when-a-candidate-dies-before-a-recount/688311/3 "2014-05-13T02:17:20Z")
I’ve seen some articles stating that, if Crisco is found to have won, the state party will pick a nominee, which would presumably be Aiken anyway. ---
**Author:** ![yellowjacketcoder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/4bbf92/32.png) [@yellowjacketcoder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yellowjacketcoder)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2014, 2:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-when-a-candidate-dies-before-a-recount/688311/4 "2014-05-13T02:26:17Z")
There have been other elections where one candidate has died after the vote. There’s generally a procedure where either the party (if a primary) or the governor (or the real deal) appoints the successor. There was one notable case in the 2000 election where the candidate died after the ballots were printed but before the vote. Governor pledged to appoint the dead guy’s wife if he won. The dead guy won, and the wife went to congress. ---
**Author:** ![waterj2](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/858c86/32.png) [@waterj2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/waterj2)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2014, 5:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-when-a-candidate-dies-before-a-recount/688311/5 "2014-05-13T05:04:26Z")
> [@yellowjacketcoder](#): > > There have been other elections where one candidate has died after the vote. There’s generally a procedure where either the party (if a primary) or the governor (or the real deal) appoints the successor. > > There was one notable case in the 2000 election where the candidate died after the ballots were printed but before the vote. Governor pledged to appoint the dead guy’s wife if he won. The dead guy won, and the wife went to congress. And the guy that lost to the dead guy got to be Attorney General as a consolation prize. ---
**Author:** ![That\_Don\_Guy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/that_don_guy/32/538_2.png) [@That\_Don\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/That_Don_Guy)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2014, 7:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-when-a-candidate-dies-before-a-recount/688311/6 "2014-05-14T19:13:50Z")
In California, if the winner of a state party primary dies, his name remains on the November ballot, and if he wins, the office is treated as if he had died after he had been elected. (For House of Representatives members, the Governor must call for an election to fill the seat no later than 150 days after the death.) ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2014, 8:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-when-a-candidate-dies-before-a-recount/688311/7 "2014-05-14T20:32:19Z")
\*\*What happens when a candidate dies before a recount? \*\* Same as if he dies at any other time, heart stops beating, no more brain activity, eventually the body begins to rot. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2014, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-when-a-candidate-dies-before-a-recount/688311/8 "2014-06-10T20:27:01Z")
> [@waterj2](#): > > And the guy that lost to the dead guy got to be Attorney General as a consolation prize. For those who are wondering: > **[Mel Carnahan](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mel_Carnahan)** > > Melvin Eugene Carnahan (February 11, 1934 – October 16, 2000) was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 51st governor of Missouri from 1993 until his death in 2000. Carnahan was a Democrat and held various positions in government. > Born in rural Missouri, Carnahan was the son of Representative A. S. J. Carnahan and attended campaign events with his father. He moved to Washington, D.C., with his father and attended high school and college there. After a stint in the U.S. Air Forc... > **[John Ashcroft](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Ashcroft)** > > John David Ashcroft (born May 9, 1942) is an American lawyer, lobbyist, and former politician who served as the 79th United States attorney general under President George W. Bush from 2001 to 2005. A Republican from Missouri, Ashcroft represented the state in the United States Senate from 1995 to 2001, and held statewide office as the 29th auditor (1973–1975), 38th attorney general (1976–1985), and 50th governor of Missouri (1985–1993). He later founded The Ashcroft Group, a Washington D.C. lob... And see also: > **[Jenny Oropeza](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jenny_Oropeza)** > > Jennifer Ann Oropeza (September 27, 1957 – October 20, 2010) was the California State Senator for the 28th district which included the cities of Carson, El Segundo, Hermosa Beach, Lomita, Manhattan Beach, Redondo Beach, and Torrance; the Los Angeles communities of Cheviot Hills, Bel Air, Harbor City, Harbor Gateway, Lennox, Mar Vista, Marina del Rey, Palms, Playa del Rey, Rancho Park, San Pedro, West Los Angeles, Westchester, Wilmington and Venice; and part of the city of Long Beach. (In 2012, as...