The Miami-Dade County Canvassing Board is overseeing the recount, which began Monday morning after a federal judge declined to remove Supervisor of Elections Alina Garcia from the panel. Rodriguez had sought her recusal, citing a conflict of interest: Garcia's son-in-law, Robert Fernandez, is an attorney representing Salazar in the recount. Garcia refused to step aside.

"I am not the one counting the votes," Garcia said last week. "Everything is transparent and open."

Salazar leads Rodriguez by 0.44 percentage points — 124,528 votes to 123,438, according to tallies with all precincts reporting. Under Florida law, a machine recount is triggered automatically when the margin is less than half a percentage point. A manual recount follows if the difference falls to 0.25% or less, according to Garcia's office.

The Florida Division of Elections requires recount results by 3 p.m. Thursday.

The contest has been bitter since election night. After polls closed, Salazar told supporters in Key Biscayne that she had won. "We have prevailed," she said. "We've prevailed against all odds." Rodriguez, who watched returns with supporters in South Miami, said the outcome was always expected to be tight. "We knew it was going to be close, and it is, so we have to wait for the votes to be counted," he said.

Salazar, pointing to a lead of more than 1,100 votes, called the margin "insurmountable" and later accused Rodriguez of acting like an "election denier" and of turning the process into a "political circus." Rodriguez's federal lawsuit pressing for Garcia's recusal argued that her family tie to Salazar's legal team compromised the appearance of fairness.

The judge's ruling allowed Garcia to remain on the board, and the count proceeded through the night. For voters in a district that stretches across Miami-Dade, the outcome will determine who represents them in Washington — and whether every ballot is counted under a process both campaigns say they are watching closely.