Were the Greens the spoilers — yet again? So you might think, reading about Tuesday’s special election in the vacant Ohio 12th congressional seat, in which Republican Troy Balderson is ahead of Democratic opponent Danny O’Connor by the slimmest of margins — a mere 1,754 votes. And so comes the familiar trope: Had it not been for the dastardly hippies voting Green, Balderson’s victory margin would have been far smaller, just 627 votes, assuming that all 1,127 Green voters would have opted for O’Connor. That tiny margin would have triggered an automatic recount under Ohio law.
Election officials will begin counting additional absentee and provisional ballots later this month, but for the moment it doesn't seem the Greens spoiled anything but a recount drama.