Why don’t they force the loser of the recount challenge to repay the government (us) for the cost?
If the difference in votes from the original count had been more than 0.5% (one half of one percent), she would have had to pay part of the cost.
However, as it was, the margin was close enough that under current law, the recount would be paid by taxpayers.
IIRC, under the first canvass, Prosser won by 0.48%. With only a few hundred more Prosser votes, and the recount would probably not have been requested. But hey... so long as it’s “free”... why not, right Joanne?