But by afternoon, the pendulum had swung the other way when the numbers in four Richmond precincts were updated, putting Herring ahead by 117 votes out of more than 2 million cast statewide.
Richmond Registrar J. Kirk Showalter said that Republicans had asked to review the results of eight of the city’s voting precincts, and then added another 10.
“They demanded these figures be reviewed in public because of some discrepancies that they said they had identified,” Showalter said. “We went through all the figures again today.”
In precinct 501, where a ballot machine’s results had not been sent to the master tally, Herring picked up 116 votes. He gained 16 more in precincts 603, 607 and 802.
Such changes are not unusual, Showalter said. “There will always be changes from election night, and the numbers are still unofficial.”
The attorney general race may be the closest contest in the state’s recent history, said Charles Judd, chairman of the Virginia State Board of Elections.
