Missouri certifies wins for Trump, Clinton in close primary

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Republican businessman Donald Trump and former Democratic secretary of state Hillary Clinton were certified Tuesday as the winners of Missouri's presidential primaries, though a recount remains a possibility.

The official results of the March 15 primaries show Trump and Clinton both prevailed over their challengers by a mere fraction of a percent.

Trump led Texas Sen. Ted Cruz by 1,965 votes of more than 939,000 cast in the Republican primary -- a margin of about one-fifth of a percentage point.

Clinton led Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders by 1,574 votes of more than 629,000 cast in the Democratic primary -- a margin of one-quarter of a percentage point.

Under Missouri law, candidates who lose by less than one-half of a percentage point can request a recount at state expense. They have seven days to do so.

Sanders previously said he won't seek a recount because it's unlikely to affect significantly the number of delegates each candidate receives to the Democratic National Convention under the proportional allocation system used by the party.

The Associated Press has not declared Trump the winner because Cruz has not ruled out a recount.

"I think they'll take a look at it," Carl Bearden, a Missouri co-chairman of the Cruz campaign, said Tuesday. But "I've never seen a recount make a difference (in a statewide Missouri election), and I think they'll take that into consideration."

Tuesday's certified vote takes into account provisional ballots and absentee ballots cast by overseas voters that came in after election day. Trump and Clinton increased their lead in the certified vote -- Trump's margin grew by 239 votes and Clinton's by 43 votes -- compared to the election night tally.

Of Missouri's 52 delegates to the Republican National Convention, 12 go to the top statewide vote-getter. The rest are awarded in chunks of five to the winners in each of the state's congressional districts. Trump carried five congressional districts and Cruz three, according to the certified results.

Missouri's 71 Democratic delegates are awarded proportionally based on the votes candidates received statewide and in each of the state's eight congressional districts. Sanders carried six congressional districts and Clinton two, but Clinton won handily in a heavily Democratic district in St. Louis. Several others had close margins. Clinton will get 36 delegates and Sanders 35.

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