One month after Election Day, the race between incumbent Democratic Rep. Stephanie Vigil and Republican Rebecca Keltie in the Colorado Springs House District 16 still has no clear winner.

After all ballots were counted in El Paso County last month, unofficial results showed Keltie leading by six votes, well within the margin for an automatic recount.

The recount, completed Thursday, found more votes for Vigil, and the race was determined to be a tie. But the canvass board reversed three votes for Vigil, making Keltie the winner.

Vigil has indicated she is not giving up.

“There are legal remedies available to me to investigate possible variables that would return the results to what the recount process initially determined, but I will need to consult with legal experts before making a decision of that magnitude,” she said.

For now, the Secretary of State’s Office is accepting the results as determined by the canvass board, according to a spokesperson. The office wouldn’t comment on what it would do in case of a tie.

So, what about a tie?

State law dictates that the Secretary of State will determine “by lot” which candidates shall be declared the representative. That’s a law dating back to 1877, when it was up to state canvassers to make the decision. It became the Secretary of State’s responsibility in 1967.

While it is possible that this has never happened before for a statewide office, it’s happened several times at local government levels and fairly recently.

9News reported in2017 that the Adams County Clerk and Recorder used a fishbowl to determine which of two candidates would be seated on the Northglenn City Council.

Two other races that year were also decided by lot, in Julesburg School District RE-1, which also used a fishbowl, and Cripple Creek City Council, where the person picking the highest card from a deck of cards was determined to be the winner.

“It’s been an incredible couple of years serving as HD-16’s representative. I’ve taken on big challenges in the legislature and won, advancing innovative legislation to protect workers, make housing more affordable, and safeguard the rights of the most vulnerable Coloradans,” Vigil said in a statement on Thursday. 

“My deepest gratitude to the broad and diverse network of supporters who have backed me through all of this. Nothing is possible without community,” Vigil said. 

As for the recount, Vigil said a canvass board review reversed three votes for her, making Keltie the winner by three votes, and that’s the result that will go into a report that goes to the Secretary of State.

But the Republican on that same three-member canvass board, Candice Stutzriem, voted not to certify the 2024 general election results on Nov. 25. She cited the password breach for election equipment that originated with the office of Secretary of State Jena Griswold, who hid that information from county clerks until it became public through a state Republican Party announcement just days before the Nov. 5 election.

Griswold said the breach did not impact election equipment, saying it requires two passwords for access and a person using those passwords to do it in person, not remotely.

The El Paso County results became official after the Democratic member of the board and the El Paso County Clerk and Recorder voted.

Vigil also reminded voters that three votes is “hardly a landslide.”

“So many community members have reached out to express their frustration. Please know that you’re not alone, and I’m not going anywhere. We will continue to fight for our values together, in whatever way we can,” Vigil said. 

Vigil said before the recount she would honor the results.

Colorado Democratic incumbent says she will 'honor the results' of recount in House District 16