Minnesota Senate Recount Thread -- The Continuing Saga

[Wretched Excess]

this sounds worse than it is, perhaps.  the number of ballots challenged by each campaign is almost exactly the same . . . this is still going to wind up in court, arguing over each and every one of those 3000 disputed voter "intentions".

Nearly 3,000 ballots challenged in Minnesota

(CNN) – As the recount resumes this morning in Minnesota, the number of ballots being challenged is growing: Nearly three-quarters of all votes cast in the state’s Senate race have been recounted in the battle for Norm Coleman's seat. The recount, which kicked off last Wednesday, could extend into next month.

Unofficial results from the November 4 election put Coleman, a freshman Republican senator, just 215 votes ahead of Democratic challenger Al Franken, known across the country from his days on Saturday Night Live and from his years as a talk show host on progressive radio network Air America. The slim margin for Coleman, far less than one-half of one percent, triggered an automatic recount, the first time there's ever been a recount of a U.S. Senate race in Minnesota.

Election officials at 107 sites across Minnesota are in the middle of the long process of recounting all of the ballots, surrounded by election observers and lawyers from both campaigns, and the media.

The Secretary of State's office reports that 2,801 ballots have been challenged so far, with 1,401 questioned by Franken's camp and 1400 questioned by Coleman's camp.

According to the Secretary of State's office, 74.18 percent of the more than 2.9 million votes cast in the election were recounted through the weekend. Coleman's vote today is down 1,051 votes from his Election Day total, and Franken's is down 1,008 votes — which puts Coleman's current margin at just 172 votes.

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[Tess Anderson]

And the saga continues . . . Senator Al Franken???  :

Earlier today, I spoke to several Norm Coleman campaign representatives to get their perspective on the ongoing recount. Here are some of the things they emphasized:

-- They believed the current margin was somewhere in the middle of the 160 to 211 vote range.

-- They were confident that Franken did not make the gains he should have in the highly Democratic and populated Hennepin, Ramsey, and St. Louis counties. They said they were basing this claim on the hard count, not on the fact that Coleman challenges were removing more votes from the Franken stack.

-- Tomorrow, they said they anticpate a "circus" as there is a hearing before the state Canvassing Board, which will rule on whether to count up to 6,400 rejected absentee ballots. They said they anticipate that the Board will rule that the ballots will not be counted, and that the Franken campaign will eventually pursue further legal action on this matter.

-- "I have never seen the intensity in terms of upsetting the apple cart than I have seen on the Franken side," said one representative. "They are pulling out all the stops."

-- There is a chance that the Democratic Senate could get involved, by either declaring the seat vacant, or having Coleman appointed on a provisional basis, one official posited.

The Star Tribune has more from the Franken camp, including their charges of missing ballots and contention that the real margin is only 84 votes.

http://www.spectator.org/blog/2008/11/25/the-minnesota-circus

which about says the same thing that CNN said, that the courts there would probably rule the provisional (Franken) ballots ineligible tomorrow, and that that would be appealed. Welcome to December 2004, Minnesotans.

[Schadenfreude]

A correspondent who has been working non-stop in the trenches since the Senate recount began describes Al Franken's most recent strategy: document every "error" or "problem" that occurs in the course of the recount, to prepare to attack the process if Franken loses:

Being involved daily on the count I can see Franken's strategy has changed from upping the frivolous challenges to meticulously documenting the mistakes in each precinct. They are increasing the number of "lead" volunteers in each counting room. Only one "lead" can be on the floor at any given moment, but they have several at the ready. They don't observe at the tables - they spend their time taking copious notes about each issue that arises. Yesterday I saw them pass on a challenge opportunity, only to document the incident at length. I assume at the end of this they are going to publish a laundry list of every hiccup. They will try to throw the entire process into question by throwing the City Clerks and election judges under the bus.

If you noticed the Strib picked up the Crystal story today, claiming the ballots were added to the count when in fact they were challenged - and after I talked to the campaign I would guess they might have been subpoenaed.

In fact here is how I see Franken's strategy has gone so far:
Count St. Louis County first and get the early lead (failed)
Challenge more ballots to get a lead (failed)
Start talking about the rejected absentee ballots and press for those to be canvassed (in process)
Document all failures now that the gap may never be made up.

The Franken campaign is starting to seem desperate; let's hope their desperation is well-founded.

More at Powerline

http://www.powerlineblog.com/archives/2008/11/022155.php

[Wretched Excess]

I never really expected to canvassing board to include the absentee ballots;  I doubt that the minnesota courts will be able to resist the urge to "count every vote [until they get the desired result]", though.

Canvassing Board rejects Franken move on rejected absentee ballots
Board members stressed that they weren't rejecting the merits of the arguments made by Franken's attorneys, and they made it clear that they expect the issue to be litigated.

The State Canvassing Board, a panel of five arbiters charged with determining the winner in the overtime election tussle between Republican incumbent Norm Coleman and Democratic rival Al Franken, unanimously voted this morning to deny the Franken campaign's request that rejected absentee ballots be included in the recount.

During the discussion, the board members stressed that they weren't rejecting the merits of the arguments made by Franken's attorneys. They also made it clear they expect the issue to be litigated separately from the recount procedure.

Also this morning, Secretary of State Mark Ritchie, who chairs the Canvassing Board, said that attorneys from each campaign have said they can find a way to trim the pile of ballots being challenged in counties across the state. Combined, the two sides are so far contesting more than 3,600 ballots.

"This would be a very great benefit to the Canvassing Board and the citizens of the state," Ritchie said early on at the board's meeting this morning.

Tuesday night, the Coleman campaign said that its senior counsel, Fritz Knaak, acknowledged in a fax to the Franken campaign that observers for both sides were being overly aggressive in challenging ballots "in a mounting game of ballot challenging that serves no useful purpose."

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[Wretched Excess]

Coleman gains 66 votes in becker county

[Miss Mia]

I'm keeping my fingers crossed that Coleman keeps his lead up. 

[Wretched Excess]

translation : "give me the election, or I will tie this thing up in court for what will seem like the rest of everyone's miserable life"

Franken staying out of court -- for now

Senate candidate Al Franken will not appeal a decision by the Minnesota State Canvassing Board, which today rejected the Democrat's request that rejected  absentee ballots be included in the race's hotly contested recount.

The canvassing board's decision was perceived as a blow to Franken, who trailed Republican incumbent Norm Coleman by just 283 votes Wednesday with about 80% of the recount completed. Some of the absentee ballots appear to have been improperly rejected due to administrative errors, and the Franken team hoped that -- when inspected -- the reconsidered ballots would yield votes to close Coleman's razor-tight advantage.
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Democratic Majority Leader Harry Reid echoed that concern, calling the canvassing board’s decision “cause for great concern” in a statement issued this afternoon.
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Still, top Franken attorney Marc Elias said this afternoon that, although the campaign is "disappointed" with the board's ruling, the campaign won't be taking the issue to court at this time. Elias painted the board's hesitation as a sign that election officials want to use the proper channels to prevent legitimately cast votes from being unfairly thrown out.

"Whether it is at the county level, before the Canvass Board, before the courts, or before the United States Senate, we don't know yet," Elias said today. "But we remain confident these votes will be counted."

Link

[Thor]

I think that MN should have a re-vote just for the Senatorial race. Place all of the candidates on the ballot plus add "None of the Above" and take it for what it is. I'm really disappointed in the candidates, the voters, and the election process in MN.

[Wretched Excess]

I think that MN should have a re-vote just for the Senatorial race. Place all of the candidates on the ballot plus add "None of the Above" and take it for what it is. I'm really disappointed in the candidates, the voters, and the election process in MN.

what's happening in MN certainly makes the run-off scenario seem more sensible.  no matter who ultimately gets sent to the senate, he will have under 45% of the vote, which means that more people voted against him than for him.

[Schadenfreude]

I think that MN should have a re-vote just for the Senatorial race. Place all of the candidates on the ballot plus add "None of the Above" and take it for what it is. I'm really disappointed in the candidates, the voters, and the election process in MN.

If you don't like it, move. 

[Thor]

If you don't like it, move. 

I DID, to a RED state, too....... Minnesota and all of the Libtards... Ohh and the Minnesota SIX month Winters !!! (It was 75 degrees here today)


 

[Schadenfreude]

I DID, to a RED state, too....... Minnesota and all of the Libtards... Ohh and the Minnesota SIX month Winters !!! (It was 75 degrees here today)


 

Heavens! You turned into a raving looney! 

[Wretched Excess]

Heavens! You turned into a raving looney! 

the south does that to people.

[Thor]

Did I mention that it was 75° and sunny today ??? 

[Schadenfreude]

Did I mention that it was 75° and sunny today ??? 

A raving looney.... who repeats himself! 

[Thor]

A raving looney.... who repeats himself! 

Enjoy your below freezing weather.......... 

[Schadenfreude]

Enjoy your below freezing weather.......... 

that which does not kill you, makes you stronger. 

Have a Happy Thanksgiving!

[Thor]

that which does not kill you, makes you stronger. 

Have a Happy Thanksgiving!

I'm NOT a Nietzsche believer....