Michigan's recount of the state's presidential election results commenced at noon on Monday, following a late-night ruling by a federal judge.In a rare Sunday hearing, U.S. District Court Judge Mark Goldsmith ruled in the favor of Green Party candidate Jill Stein, who requested the recount, allowing the massive effort to begin Monday instead of Wednesday.The jumpstart left Michigan clerks scrambling to hand-count some 4.8 million ballots by Dec. 13.Stein, who finished in fourth place with less than 1.1 percent of the vote, has requested recounts in key battleground states Michigan, Wisconsin, and Pennsylvania amid concerns that the election could have been hacked . Judge Mark Goldsmith issued his ruling early Monday that rejected an effort by Michigan state officials to wait two business days before starting to hand-count about 4.8 million ballots. The Green Party and its candidate, Jill Stein, have said their requests for recounts in those states were focused on ensuring the integrity of the U.S. voting system and not on changing the result of the election. Lawsuits have been filed in Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, three "Rust Belt" states that bucked their history of supporting Democrats and handed Republican Donald Trump narrow wins in the Nov. 8 election that ultimately gave him victory over Democratic rival Hillary Clinton. Advertisement

Republican Attorney General Bill Schuette, the Trump campaign and super PACs have filed separate lawsuits asking state courts to prevent the recount, arguing that Stein, as the fourth-place finisher, is not “aggrieved” because she has no chance of winning in a recount. Green Party candidate Jill Stein is trying to force recounts in three states.
A federal judge in Michigan, Mark A. Goldsmith, rules that a recount in the Presidential Election vote in that state must begin on Monday, December 5.