Jill Stein's Recount Effort Raises Millions In Just Hours

Green Party presidential nominee Jill Stein’s call to raise funds to support vote recounts in three key states was met with ease late Wednesday, with the fundraiser quickly exceeding its $2 million goal .

Stein’s press director announced Wednesday afternoon that the Green Party candidate needed an initial $2 million to support recounts in Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania, three states where President-elect Donald Trump performed better than expected.

Within hours, Stein’s fundraiser rapidly gained traction. Just after 11 p.m. EST, supporters had donated $1.9 million, then it climbed past $2 million before midnight. The goal was surpassed about eight hours after Stein’s announcement was delivered over Facebook Live. Just before 3 a.m. EST, the fund surpassed $2.5 million . By Thursday evening, that total had passed the $4 million mark, hitting $4.5 million around 11 p.m.

Stein’s campaign originally set out to raise $2 million by Friday afternoon, in time to meet Wisconsin’s Nov. 25 deadline and $1.1 million filing fee. But the candidate secured enough funds for all of Wisconsin’s, Pennsylvania’s and part of Michigan’s filing fees before Thursday.

The multiple-state effort will take more than the initial request of $2 million, Stein’s campaign wrote on its fundraiser page, which displays a goal of $2.5 million.

“The costs associated with recounts are a function of state law,” Stein’s campaign wrote. “Attorney’s fees are likely to be another $2-3 million, then there are the costs of the statewide recount observers in all three states. The total cost is likely to be $6-7 million.”

This article has been updated to reflect the new tally.