Election Contest Ruling Deals Coleman Setback, Appeal Certain
Former Sen. Norm Coleman suffered a setback in his election challenge today. AP Photo by Jean Pieri.A three-judge state panel convened to review an election contest brought by former Minnesota Sen. Norm Coleman (R) in his race against entertainer Al Franken (D) has dealt the Republican a serious setback in its ruling this afternoon.
The panel will allow the consideration of only 400 wrongly rejected absentee ballots to be reviewed and possibly counted -- making it very difficult for Coleman to make up the 225-vote deficit he currently carries. (Here's the full ruling.)
"We feel pretty good about where we stand," said Marc Elias, a lawyer for Franken's campaign, on a conference call conducted moments ago. "This court has spoken clearly about the legal standards are" for the inclusion of ballots.
Ben Ginsberg, the lead attorney for Coleman, referred to the ruling as an "April Fools Day" judgment (one day early) and stated that the decision "gives us no choice but to appeal that order to Minnesota Supreme Court." Ginsberg offered no thought about whether or not an appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court would be considered.
Ginsberg said it would be a "long shot" for Coleman to make up the necessary ground on Franken with just 400 ballots being included.
The ballots will be opened, sorted and potentially counted by the Minnesota Secretary of State on April 7. It remains unclear how many of the 400 votes will actually be counted. It's also unknown whether Coleman will appeal the ruling to the state Supreme Court, which is within his rights.
Coleman's campaign had pushed for the inclusion of a far wider universe of so-called "wrongly rejected absentee ballots" in the final count -- arguing that the standards for inclusion during a statewide recount that saw Coleman go from ahead to behind were entirely inconsistent.
National Republicans have pledged to fight -- and filibuster -- any attempt to seat Franken as the 59th Democratic Senator in the 111th Congress prior to Coleman exhausting his legal rights.
If Coleman chooses -- as Ginsberg has pledged -- to continue his legal challenge, watch to see whether Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (Nev.) moves forward with seating Franken or whether he continues to wait Coleman out.
Reid spokesman Jim Manley did not directly address the leader's next move in a statement released late Tuesday. "Senator Reid is looking forward to the final resolution of this case by the Minnesota courts so that Al Franken can finally be seated as the new senator from Minnesota," said Manley.
Coleman and Franken have been locked in an epic recount battle five months after 2.9 million voters cast ballots in the Minnesota Senate race. The race recently claimed the somewhat ignominious title as the longest statewide election in Minnesota history.
The fight has been grueling for the combatants and tedious for the voters, yet the outcome remains crucial not just for Minnesota -- which currently has only one U.S. senator -- but also for President Obama and the Republicans.
The longer the Democrats lack a 59th vote, the harder it will be for them to break filibusters -- 60 votes are required -- on their most important and contentious initiatives.
By Chris Cillizza | March 31, 2009; 5:13 PM ET
