Recount Update – 12/30
Posted in Blog on December 30th, 2008
TODAY: CANVASSING BOARD APPROVES FINAL BALLOT REVIEW – FRANKEN HOLDS 50 VOTE LEAD
Today, the state canvassing board unanimously approved a spreadsheet reflecting the final disposition of nearly 3 million votes cast in the U.S. Senate race. With all challenges reviewed and all ballots allocated, Al Franken leads Norm Coleman by 50 votes. A winner is expected to be declared next week after improperly rejected absentee ballots have been included in the count.
http://www.startribune.com/politics/national/senate/36880254.html
http://www.twincities.com/allheadlines/ci_11336331
FLASHBACK: FRANKEN CAMPAIGN PREDICTED 35-50 VOTE LEAD
http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2008/12/20/franken-team-expects-a-win-of-35-50-votes/
http://www.politico.com/blogs/scorecard/1208/Franken_expects_to_defeat_Coleman_by_3550_votes.html
AL FRANKEN STATEMENT ON COMPLETION OF CHALLENGE REVIEW PROCESS
“Today, the state canvassing board completed an important step in this process. I’m glad to be ahead, and as it appears that we’re on track to win, I want Minnesotans to know that I’m ready to get to work for them in Washington on Day One. We still need to ensure that Minnesotans whose absentee ballots were improperly rejected aren’t disenfranchised, but we are close to the finish line. And we should all be proud of our state’s electoral process, and grateful for the dedication of our public servants, from the state canvassing board down to elections officials at the local level.”
http://blog.alfranken.com/2008/12/30/statement-from-al-franken/
LATEST ON ABSENTEE BALLOTS – COLEMAN CAMP: COUNT VOTES FROM RED AREAS ONLY
The Coleman campaign rejected an offer by the Franken campaign to count all 1,350 absentee ballots identified by local elections officials as improperly rejected, making the nonsensical contention that these are all “Franken ballots.” Now, the Coleman campaign has introduced a set of 650 additional ballots they seek to have included, which the Associated Press found “skew heavily toward suburban and rural counties where he did best in the election.” Franken attorney David Lillehaug said: “Today, the Coleman campaign, which has since day one objected to the counting of improperly rejected absentee ballots, made clear they have little interest in participating in the process set forth by the Supreme Court to ensure that Minnesotans are not improperly disenfranchised. We are almost at the finish line of this recount, and instead of moving this process forward, they play political games in the hope that they can drag this out and thwart the imminent conclusion of this recount.”
http://tpmelectioncentral.talkingpointsmemo.com/2008/12/coleman_okays_counting_ballots.php
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5gMpTmr96V5hKIfyHT4Av4jsVQgrQD95CLI900
STAR TRIBUNE EDITORIAL: CANVASS BOARD INSPIRES CONFIDENCE
This morning the Star Tribune editorialized that the good work of the State Canvassing Board “has made it more likely that when the end comes, it will be accepted as fair.” The next meeting of the State Canvassing Board is January 5th, at which point the Board will accept amended returns from local precincts that include improperly rejected absentee ballots. Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar stated in Monday’s Star Tribune that she wants to see the winner – as declared by the State Canvassing Board – seated in the U.S. Senate. This follows Senate precedent, including 1996 when Mary Landrieu was seated despite and during a dispute waged by her opponent.
http://www.startribune.com/opinion/editorials/36852939.html
http://www.startribune.com/politics/state/36785544.html
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/12/28/franken-should-be-seated_n_153796.html
KEY POINTS
- We are nearly at the end of what has been a long but fair recount process. Each step has been conducted carefully and in full view of the public, and we have seen public servants from the state canvassing board down to local elections officials perform a great deal of good work under significant pressure. And, at the end of that process, we believe that Al Franken will hold a lead over Norm Coleman, and will be declared the winner of the election.
- Claims by the Coleman campaign that some ballots have been counted twice are not supported by any evidence. The Coleman campaign efforts to obstruct and delay the process are merely attempts to start the recount over from scratch, a process which could drag on for months. However, there is no reason to believe that a re-recount would yield any different result.
- The Coleman campaign has already said that, when it is officially declared to have lost the election, it will file an election contest, seeking to have the result overturned in court. That is their legal right. But the millions of dollars a lawsuit would cost won’t change the result. Meanwhile, if declared the winner and seated by the U.S. Senate, Al Franken will go to work in Washington on behalf of the people of Minnesota.
