Posted on 04/13/2009 4:37:37 PM PDT by ButThreeLeftsDo
Over five months after the election, a three-judge panel has declared Democrat Al Franken the winner of the Minnesota U.S. Senate race.
The judges issued their final ruling late Monday, stating "Franken received the highest number of lawfully cast ballots in the Nov. 4, 2008 general election."
They also have determined that Franken is entitled to receive the certificate of election.
Last week, Republican Norm Coleman suffered a blow after a few hundred previously rejected absentee ballots were opened and counted at the tail end of Coleman's lawsuit contesting his loss in a statewide recount. They broke almost 2-to-1 for Franken to pad his lead to 312.
Outside the courtroom, Coleman attorney Ben Ginsberg minimized the new margin because his side was certain to appeal to the Minnesota Supreme Court.
"What happened today in the sphere of this election is really inconsequential," he said. "There's a much larger universe of ballots that should be opened."
Ginsberg said he hopes the high court would reinstate as many as 4,800 absentee ballots rejected by local officials.
Top Franken attorney Marc Elias said he doubted an appeal would change things.
"The problem that former Senator Coleman has is he lost fair and square," Elias said. "He lost because more people voted for Al Franken than voted for Norm Coleman. No amount of lawyering or sophisticated legal arguments is going to change that."
Secretary of State Mark Ritchie, a Democrat, said he would welcome an appeal, saying he thinks the state's highest court could provide closure.
The appeal must come within 10 days after the final order from the three-judge panel that presided over the seven-week trial.
Had I lived in Minnesota, I would have been up at 5am to vote for Coleman.
Send in the clown ...
Really, now. It's the beginning of the third quarter; your team is down by three, and you're giving up?
“No surprise. Maybe if Coleman had run as a conservative....oh well.”
Well, then there’s that......
Sad fact of the matter is, Al “Scheisskopf” Franken will fit right in in Wash. DC.
Never thought I’d say this, but if this country isn’t balancing on the edge of a knife already it will be soon, considering the last two months ...
Obama & Co. means if you aren’t zeroed-in by now, better get it done.
Yep. For now.
I’ll get a second wind later.
Damnit, I feel like we have been ambushed!
This whole thing has made me ill to the point where I quit reading the 'unfolding' here about a month ago. Could not take it. Anyone who assumes that Repubs will surely win in 'two' and respectively 'four'; had better rethink the options; given the Left's 'third-world'/netherworld. . .anti-moral; utterly debased Utilitarian and self-serving political MO.
Al Franken is a two-legged cockroache; nothing more.
Is Minnesota crying; perhaps embarassed. . .or are they celebrating the success of this abject fool for their leadership who defies every insecticide.
Was there ever any doubt that Franken would be the new Senator of MN? The fix was in a long time ago. Coleman simply delayed the inevitable.
SNL has always sucked.
Just like Johnny Rocko (Edward G. Robinson) said in "Key Largo" with Bogie -- they just counted the votes until they came out right.
When are Republicans going to have the balls to call a spade a spade? But noooooooo -- blame it on 100 percenters, blame it on the GOP not leaning left enough, blame it on anything that won't make Republicans look bad to Liberals -- even when it's plain as the nose on anybody's face how Franken got in there: HE CHEATED.
Did not know cockroaches wore diapers. . .
ACORN and Soros bought and paid for this.....
I need another drink.
I can't wait to get down to the dirt with these tyrants.
This is a stolen election. The people of Minnesota did not elect this piece of crud.
Once I convince my kids to move, I’m outta here!
Sickening! Does anybody remember the song/skit Franken did on SNL...”Fish heads, fish heads, roly poly fish heads. Fish heads fish heads eat em up, yum.” ?? It was way back in the 70’s. That’s all I think about when I see him.
This sucks!!!
Probably celebrating.
OMG!
“If there are any posters from Minnesota.....”
Hellooooooo?
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