How close does the presidential election have to be for a recount?

(NEXSTAR) — In the days and weeks leading up to Election Day, polling showed the race for the White House was tight.  Stay up to date on all election news with The Hill's 2024 Election Day Live Blog.

Multiple states, including crucial swing states, also saw record turnout during early voting periods. A week before the election, more than 41 million votes had been cast, according to the Associated Press: that’s roughly a quarter of the number of votes counted in the 2020 presidential election.

If the results are close, we could hear calls for recounts like we did in 2020. Whether a recount can occur will vary from state to state.

Half of the U.S., as well as the District of Columbia, have automatic recounts. Here’s what triggers them, according to the Associated Press and the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL):

• Alabama: Margin of less than 0.5%
• Alaska: Tied race
• Arizona: Margin of 0.5% or less
• Colorado: Margin of 0.5% or less
• Connecticut: Tied race or margin less than 0.5%, but not more than 2,000 votes
• Delaware: The smaller of a 0.5% margin or less or fewer than 1,000 votes
• District of Columbia: Margin of less than 1%
• Florida: Margin of 0.5%
• Hawaii: Margin of 100 or fewer votes, or 0.25%, whichever is larger
• Kentucky: Margin of 0.5% or less
• Michigan: Margin of 2,000 votes or less between the top two candidates
• Montana: Tied race
• New Mexico: Margin of less than 0.25%
• North Dakota: Margin of 0.5% or less of the highest vote cast for that office
• Ohio: Margin of less than 0.25%
• Oregon: Tied race, or margin of no more than 0.2% of total votes
• Pennsylvania: Margin of 0.5%
• South Carolina: Margin less than 1%
• South Dakota: Tied race
• Texas: Tied race
• Utah: Tied race
• Vermont: Tied race
• Washington: Margin of less than 2,000 votes and less than 0.5% of total votes
• Wyoming: Margin is less than 1%

As long as 500 votes are cast in the election, Nebraska’s automatic recount would be triggered by a margin of 1% or less “of the votes received by the candidate who received the highest number of votes for the office.”

In New York, votes must be recounted if election officials find “a discrepancy exists” between how many people voted and the number of votes that are tabulated. According to the NCSL, a margin of less than 5,000 votes can also trigger an automatic recount.

These states do not have automatic recounts: Arkansas, California, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Mississippi, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Tennessee, and West Virginia. 

Kentucky, Minnesota, Oklahoma, and Virginia do have automatic recounts, but not for the presidential race.

Most states will allow a candidate to request a recount. However, they may require certain margins: 

• Alaska: Less than 0.5%
• Georgia: 0.5% or less
• Maryland: 0.25% or less (voter can also make request)
• Minnesota: Less than 0.25%
• Missouri: Less than 0.5%
• Montana: Less than 0.25% (or 0.5%, if the candidate pays)
• North Carolina: Less than 0.5% or 10,000 votes
• North Dakota: Margin is more than 0.5% and less than 2% of highest vote cast for a candidate in that race
• South Dakota: Less than 0.25%
• Texas: Less than 10% of elected candidate
• Utah: 0.25% or less
• Vermont: Margin is 2% or less of total votes cast, divided by number of persons to be elected
• Virginia: 1% or less of total votes casts for requester and winner (5% or less for write-ins)
• Wisconsin: Margin is less than 1%

Rhode Island only allows recounts in races where 100,000 votes have been cast. In those cases, the margin must be half a percentage point or 1,500 votes, whichever is smaller. 

Some states — Arkansas, Colorado, Iowa, Kansas, Maine, Michigan, New Jersey, New Mexico, Nevada, Ohio, Oklahoma, Wyoming, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia — will allow a recount regardless of the margin.

In Idaho, a candidate seeking a recount must apply with the attorney general. Any candidate can file a petition for a recount in Indiana, Oregon, and Washington, or a party official can do it on their behalf.

Any voter in California is allowed to make a recount request in any precinct but state law does not specify details on candidates making such a request. 

Candidates in Pennsylvania can’t outright request a recount, but can appeal the count of any county, which could result in a court calling for a recount. Nebraska allows a defeated candidate to petition for a recount while Delaware, Massachusetts, and New Hampshire have margin requirements. 

Louisiana allows recount requests if the absentee or early voting ballots cast could make a difference in the outcome. Candidates can also ask for a “reinspection” of polling place results or ask the courts to intervene in an election contest.

While “any person with standing to contest” an election can do so in Alabama, federal offices are not listed among the offices for which a recount can be collected. Illinois allows for a losing candidate to petition for a recount only if they received at least 95% of the vote of the winning candidate. 

In most cases, if the requested recount swings the race in favor of that candidate, they will be reimbursed what they paid, or the state will pay for it.

State laws in Arizona, Connecticut, Florida, Hawaii, Mississippi, New York, and South Carolina do not provide presidential candidates or voters the option to request a recount. Only a court can initiate a recount of a contested election in Tennessee.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.