MIAMI, Nov 8 — Florida Democrat Bill Nelson yesterday called for a recount in his race for re-election to the US Senate against Republican Governor Rick Scott.

The race during Tuesday’s midterm vote was one of America’s most-watched, with the outgoing governor Scott mounting a tough challenge against three-time incumbent Nelson.

As of November 7 at 9:14 pm Scott narrowly led Nelson by 0.4 percentage points, with 99 per cent of precincts reporting, according to The New York Times.

"A significant number of ballots have not yet been counted and, because of the size of Florida, we believe the results of the election are unknown and require a recount,” said Marc Elias, a lawyer representing Nelson’s campaign.

The Nelson camp’s statement said Scott had "prematurely” claimed victory on Tuesday, and cited media reports of balloting problems and other polling irregularities.

The statement said state law requires a recount when the margin between candidates is less than a one-half percentage point. — AFP