Elections

Close Democratic count in Iowa raised questions

Akane Otani
WATCH LIVE
Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders speaks at his caucus night rally Des Moines, Iowa February 1, 2016.
Rick Wilking | Reuters

The Iowa Democratic Party is standing by the results of the Iowa caucuses in which Hillary Clinton apparently defeated Sen. Bernie Sanders by the narrowest of margins, The Des Moines Register reported.

Sanders' camp wanted a review of the tallies of Monday's vote. They said they found discrepancies between tallies at the precinct level and numbers that were reported to the state party.

"We just want to work with the party and get the questions that are unanswered answered," Sanders aide Rania Batrice told the Register.

The party said Sanders won 49.6 percent of the state delegate equivalents to Clinton's 49.8 percent.

"These are the final results," party Chairwoman Andy McGuire told the newspaper Tuesday.

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The scrutiny from the Sanders campaign was reminiscent of the drama in the 2012 Iowa caucuses, when Republican Party officials had to review — and ultimately revise — the race's results.

Then, the party had named former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney the winner by eight votes. Yet after looking into reports of missing or misallocated votes, party officials issued a statement declaring former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum the winner.

Click here to read the full story in The Des Moines Register.