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One Winner in Florida Recount Is Omaha-Based Firm

One Winner in Florida Recount Is Omaha-Based Private Equity Firm

(Bloomberg) -- Private equity-backed Election Systems & Software LLC is getting a boost in business from Florida’s effort to recount its more than 8 million votes in three statewide races.

ES&S, which is majority owned by Omaha, Nebraska-based McCarthy Group, has sent out 15 additional high speed scanners and 45 staffers for Florida’s recount. Miami-Dade, the state’s largest county, had rented three central scanners for the election, and five more were scheduled to arrive Monday for the recount.

“Our folks will work around the clock right along with the Florida election officials," said Teresa Paulsen, a spokeswoman for ES&S, the biggest player in the obscure, private equity-dominated $300 million U.S. voting-machine industry.

Florida’s races for Senate, governor and state agriculture commissioner have all gone to a recount after each was separated by less than the 0.5 percentage point threshold to trigger a machine re-tabulation. Many Floridians are skeptical that election officials can complete the process by the Thursday deadline. After that, any races within 0.25 percentage point will proceed to a manual recount.

To contact the reporter on this story: Jonathan Levin in Miami at jlevin20@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Michael J. Moore at mmoore55@bloomberg.net, Flynn McRoberts

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