Minnesota ruling favors Franken as recount looms

ST. PAUL, Minn. — Sen. Norm Coleman has failed in an attempt to block some absentee ballots from being counted in his close race with Democrat Al Franken.

A Ramsey County judge on Saturday denied the request because of lack of jurisdiction. The incumbent Republican had tried to block 32 ballots from heavily Democratic Hennepin County.

Coleman's campaign says the ballots were not counted on Election Day or were not kept in sealed boxes. It says the request was made amid "increasing questions about unexplained and improbable shifts in vote counts."

The most recent vote tally has Coleman leading Franken by only a couple hundred votes. A recount is planned.

Comments

[FuturePrez]

Coleman is such a cry baby and whiner. Why does anyone vote for him? What's he going to do if he doesn't get what he wants in Congress? Stomp off and file suit?

Besides, I thought he was against activist judges? What's more activist than ruling against clear, established laws that have no obvious conflict with state or US constitution?

[AxelDC]

It was childish of him to demand Franken concede on such narrow margins with a legally mandated recount pending. Now it looks like Coleman has slightly better than 50% chance of coming out ahead after the recount, given only a 200 vote lead on 10 million ballots.

[hypnotoad72]

Schtoopid activist judges, how dare they follow the law?

[simplify]

I smell victory for Franken

[BamBamThankYouUncleSam]

no, you just smell franken

[mjb5406]

No, it's just the lingering odor of dirty Republican politics.

[mick7191]

Send money

[mysterygirl18]

You go Al-LOL...you know there's just something about that Al- LOL....

[grizhead63]

Al, just ensure your people go over every vote and precinct result with a fine tooth comb. Remember that your opponents are capable of virtually anything.

[jeffrey678]

The US Chamber of Commerce in Washington DC is giving Coleman millions of dollars to fight this in court. They don't want a president Obama to have a filibuster proof majority in the US senate. They call this the FPP (filibuster power play) strategy.

[TrooAmerican]

why is the us chamber of commerce even allowed to be a partisan PAC?

[Robocalledbynitwits]

Coleman's argument for a temporary restraining order was dismissed on jurisdictional grounds not on the merits. Get a grip.

The election will be decided in the courts because it appears that one side, Franken's, is in the process of trying to steal the election with mysteriously appearing votes long after the polls have closed. Interesting how every newly discovered "ballot" or "error" always favors Franken over Coleman. Like the 100 newly discovered votes all for Franken. Right.

[ImpressedByHonesty]

Look at all of the 'supress the vote' efforts that have gone on this election season. I think you would be hard pressed to find one instance where democrats would be involved in an actual increase/decrease in the democratic vote count-- and was covered by a major news organization. But you will find dozens of Republican instances.

[jeffrey678]

Suppress the vote is a old conservative strategy by conservative Paul Weyrich. You can hear it from his own mouth on you tube.

[ObamanKenobi]

Wrong! Provisional and absentee ballots can go uncounted, when there is no need to count because the margin of victory renders them unnecessary.. This is why, in some states, a close count triggers an automatic recount. There is no such thing as newly discovered votes. They are simply added into the official count because they become necessary to determine the true winner.

[cheforacle]

Coleman was trying to use the courts to get an advantage and failed. It matters not if the decision was based on the merits or jurisdiction, that remedy was refused to him. At first Coleman said they shouldn;t do a recount (although MN law mandates it) and then he rushes to court. What does that make him a hypocrite. And considering the numerous comments you have made since Tuesday on HuffPo, I'd say you are a sore loser. The problem is that you have made several comments which are factually inaccurate. It is ashame that you care so little about your fellow citizens that you choose systematically to delude them with your falsehoods. But that is you.

[mjb5406]

I'm sure it would be OK with you if Coleman had those "newly discovered" ballots. Funny how the Republicans feel justified in doing what they pull the Democrats into court for... double standard.

By the way, if you read the news properly, those 100 votes were not "newly discovered"; the election judge reported 42 votes instead of 142; it was a clerical error. But I'm sure that you'll say that was part of an insidious Democratic plot, too.

[glesslib]

Have you ever worked at the polls? Have you ever even looked around when you voted? All the people working the polls around the country are retired people who do this once every 2 to 4 years, with new technology evolving between elections....technology they don't understand. I am not at all mystified that mistakes were made that change votes by a few hundred in each county. These are not sacred numbers, just because they were the first ones that came in.

By the way, where were you in 2000, when the state of Florida did a recount that changed thousands of votes? Was that one illegal? If so, I want all the money back that my tax dollars paid for the Bush War in Iraq.

Spare us all your piety. There are people from both parties keeping an eye on the recount. So you republicans are just going to have to deal with the nationwide repudiation of your polilcies and move on. We did so in 1994.

[CitizenGeek]

Senator Al Franken would be an amazing liberal ally in the Senate! Everything should be done to get him elected!

[repugnicansfearme]

Where is the Dem party in this? If this were reversed, there would be sleazy republican lawyers crawling all over Minnesota, you betcha. Get on this. Or are we still hung over from Obama winning. I hope not. It looks like Al can win this one, but it is going to take some legal eagles to help.

[hypnotoad72]

Given Norm's lawsuit against Al for defamation, the lawyers are busy... Al could put up a countersuit, however, on the same grounds. Most if not all the ads (as if I counted, I have a life) aimed at Al were taken out of context, and/or hypocritical.

[plebeianswillrevolt]

man, this is one election I hope democrats win. Coleman is a reptile.

[redstateirate]

Strange, I thought Norm Coleman, in a fit of fiscal conservatism was questioning the amount of money it would cost for a recournt. Apparently he has no qualms about spending oodles of money on lawyers and lawsuits to block counting ballots.

Ain''t that paradoxical?

What a putz! Go Al.

And don't forget to throw some love (cash) Jim Martin's way in Georgia. Saxby Chambliss is a far bigger sh*tstain on America than Coleman.

[UGAgirl]

Amen! But if you are a resident of our great red state, you know it's not likely...

[cheforacle]

I am and I do. Turnout will be a problem.

[hypnotoad72]

Well said.

And if the situation were reversed, it should be equal treatment too.

[OhComeOnNow]

kenman923 our newest paid poster from the dark side.

Chanelling the rethug, "we all know what I mean" tirade, taken to new heights by Michael Goldfarb .

[bluecatz]

I would/will be very happy to see Franken oust this Coleman guy.

[Afikpochic]

Al's win will be the next best win. pls win one of the road, Al.