New Jersey's Green Party gubernatorial candidate is asking the public to donate to Jill Stein's presidential recount effort.
HIGHLAND PARK -- New Jersey's Green Party gubernatorial candidate Rev. Seth Kaper-Dale is asking the public to donate to the presidential recount effort in three battleground states currently being led by his party's presidential standard-bearer Jill Stein.
Kaper-Dale, 41, who earlier this month announced he'd run in next year's gubernatorial race, said in a statement Thursday that it was "the right of a presidential candidate to demand a recount if there are concerns about the manner that an election was carried out."
Stein's effort calls for a recount of vote totals in Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin after concerns were raised by election integrity experts about some "statistical anomalies" in those states, according to a statement on the fundraising website.
So far, the initiative has raised more than $3.6 million as of about 2 p.m. on Thursday with a goal of $4.5 million.
"As we celebrate Thanksgiving I am thankful that we live in a Democracy ... and I encourage all people, from every party and no party, to give generously to the fundraising efforts," said Kaper-Dale, of the Reformed Church of Highland Park.
There is no evidence to suggest that the results were hacked, according to a report by The Associated Press. The effort merely seeks to confirm a cyberattack was not carried out to sway the machine-counted vote totals, which, according to a report by Vox.com, are tallied by optical-scan computers theoretically vulnerable to a cyberattack.
Stein emphasized in her statement that, "Our effort to recount votes in those states is not intended to help Hillary Clinton."
Kaper-Dale echoed that statement on Thursday, saying, "Jill Stein and the Green Party have been deeply critical of both Democrats and Republicans," adding that the Green Party had "nothing to gain personally" in the recount.
The following are the filing fees and deadlines for the states in which the effort is seeking to raise money:
Wisconsin: $1.1 million by Nov. 25
Pennsylvania: $500,000 by Nov. 28
Michigan: $600,000 by Nov. 30
According to the fundraising website, those numbers merely reflect the filing fees and do not include the attorney's fees and the cost of statewide recount observers in all three states, which the website says would likely total $6-7 million.
Spencer Kent may be reached at skent@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @SpencerMKent. Find the Find NJ.com on Facebook.