Defeated legislature candidate asks judge for ballot recount

Russ Barger is demanding state election officials stage a recount by hand.<br />Attorneys for the State of Nebraska dispute state law requires a hand recount. Hearing the case, Lancaster District Court Judge Kevin McManaman raised questions that reflected his skepticism about the unusual request.<br />The judge will review the arguments and issue an opinion, but he did not indicate when that would occur.<br />Russ Barger of Lincoln lost the general election in Legislative District 26 to George Dungan by 224 votes, or a difference of more than 1% of the ballots cast. State law only allows for an automatic recount if the margin falls under the 1% threshold. <br />Barger's race does not meet that thresholdqualify, but he wants to pay for the recount with his own money.