Body of News Release
Marin County, CA – The Marin County Elections Department will conduct a hand or manual recount of the votes cast in the District 5 Supervisorial race of the June 2, 2026 Statewide Primary Election, following a public request from Andy Podshadley, a candidate in that race.
The purpose of a recount will be to ascertain whether a manual recount could change the election results which determined that Magali Limeta won the election and that a November 3, 2026, election contest was not required per state law. A recount could determine whether there will be a runoff election in November for the District 5 seat, which represents the majority of Novato’s population. The District 5 seat, currently held by Board President Eric Lucan, is open because Lucan chose not to run for reelection. He is a candidate for a State Assembly seat representing District 12.
Following the official canvass of votes, the final results posted June 26 showed Limeta with 50.27% of the vote and Podshadley with 17.66%, followed by Curtis G Aikens (12.62%), Chris Carpiniello (11.30%), and Marc Hunter Lewis (8.15%). A runoff would be triggered if no candidate receives more than 50% of votes.
By law, any registered California voter may request a recount of votes for any item on the ballot as long as the request is filed within five calendar days of the election being certified. The request must specify which candidates’ votes are to be recounted and on behalf of which candidate the request is filed. The requestor of the recount must select whether the recount shall be conducted by hand or by machine.
The Registrar’s office determines the cost of conducting a recount by following state standards. Costs are based on actual staff time and materials and will be billed to the requestor, as is required by state elections code (Section 15624). More information on recounts can be found on the Elections website.