CNN

Personal to Tom Eyemdaman:

Hofstra is no Harvard, either!!!

It appears as if rational thought has been thrown out the window with some of you. You should be able to at lest acknowledge that absendtee voting should be one of the easiest ways to commit voter fraud and therefore subject to the most scrutiny in a recount.
Now how many of you referenced florida's recount in your rant but refused to acknowledge that it's the voter's responsibility to fill out the card properly? Isn't is the voter's responsibility, especially in light of the fact that the Republicans stole the 2000 election, to remove any sembalance of doubt by filling the card out properly?
And to respond to an earlier question as to how do we know that the DQ'ed absentee votes are for Democrats; the Republican absentee voters hired non-union laborers to fill them out for them.

Ahhh!! Conspiracy, right-wing, ahhh, it's all the Republicans' fault, stolen election....you people need to come back down to earth.

Al Franken in the Senate? Seriously? No one, not even the most ardent of Obama supporters can honestly think that this would be a good decision.

Kathy S. Cloughn,

Coleman is a Juris Doctor, Franken a Bachelors of Arts in General Studies. Your "case" has no merits other than the name of the schools (and Hofstra is not just another school, BTW).

I rest MY case.

This is what you would expect from Robert Mugabi.

Every valid vote should count. That being said, every step should be taken to make sure a vote is NOT valid before removing it.

Everyone here can agree that the person who has the most legitimate votes should be the winner. Problem is when someone spews that Coleman is a "patriot" and Franken is a "commie".
Ignorance seems to have no bottom.

Still ROTFLMAO

That the best come back you got?

@Unfairness Doctrine: Phil Gramm told me to tell you that you are a whiner.

But, yes, if you wish, come join the Democratic party.....the one that might indeed have to raise taxes to confront the miserable deficits and suffocating national debt left to us by the FAILED policies of the irresponsible Republican party....the one that is indeed pro-choice, that doesn't just talk the talk, like Republicans, but actually walks the walk when it comes to personal liberties and keeping government out of our personal lives.....the one that looks at the facts and scientific eveidence that shows we cannot be energy independent on our own oil, that refuses to take the myopic ideologic stance of the Republican party that drilling for oil is the be-all and end-all of energy independence, that takes the scientific evidence of global warming seriously and rejects the nay sayers in the Republican party who rely on their own ideoligic fairy tales instead of the top scientists in this country.....the one that realizes that same sex marriage "picks the pocket" of no one else outside of that marriage, that stands by the rights of others to live their lives fully, free of the religious and cultural bigotry rampant in the Republican party.

Thank you, Unfairness Doctrine, for reminding me why I'm a Democrat, and why we Democrats won this recent election, and why we rejoice further everyday as we read the vacuous postings that you sore losers leave on these blogs.

JR – if something is done to an excessive degree it would be "too", as in "too stupid to vote"

screw the 60 filibusterproof democrat majority, screw franken(go back to snl because thats the only place you should talk, socially), screw nobama and the people that voted for him because he aint goin to bring change, he's just goin to be more of the same, cant believe you all voted for that fraudulent clown.

Let the votes count. Franken don't fold like Gore. Fight this all the way.

So once again everybody to stupid to vote, voted Dem?

Sorry Al, you'll have to find another way to cheat your way into office.

To the person who said Coleman has a brain: Franken is a Harvard grad, Coleman is a Hofstra grad...I rest my case.

Dan, TX

You are a racist antidemocratic pig and I hope someone smacks some sense into your good for nothing head.

Bruce, you are making way too much sense for the neo-tards to understand. They had a slim lead before the re-count, so they don't want a re-count at all. People's voting rights don't matter to them. Counting ANY more votes can only put their candidate at risk, and they'd much rather hold on to one of the few [R] senate seats they have left, than to bother with such a minor thing as the people's right to vote. Thus, their little minds work furiously to deduce that if you are for a re-count, or counting new ballots, you MUST be for Frankin.

They supported the Bush lawyers in 2000, who moved for a full re-count, for the VERY reason that they knew that re-count wouldn't be allowed to happen. And now that this Minn. re-count is happening they will do their best not to allow any new votes to be certified. They stand firmly with the 2000 supreme court that their ilk appointed: the people have no standing to worry about their own voting rights. The posters who labeled this as "un-American" are dead on target.

DAN IN TX....I cant believe you! You just openly admitted to ELECTION FRAUD!!! In the event that a voters registration is questionable your job as a poll worker is to aid them in filling out a provisional ballot...NOT try and dissuade them from voting OR to decide who has the RIGHT to vote.

Maybe we should move all those secessionists in Alaska down to you in TX and LET you seceed. It seems that all that comes out of there is people trying to rewrite the constitution like your revered favorite sun Dubya! or should I call him Dubai???

Well, chalk one up to the Republican party. I guess there are some places where they still can get away with this.

AL FRANKEN IS A LOSER!!!!!!!!!!!!

THANK GOD WE AT LEAST KEPT ONE LOSER FROM HELPING DESTROY THIS NATION!!!!!!!!!!!!

DAN IN TX....I cant believe you!You just openly admitted to ELECTION FRAUD!!! In the evet th

Al franken should lose the election. Norm Coleman has a brain.

The SNL Liberal does NOT!!

Al Franken should pack it in. His Campaign is a lot like the one Ned Lamont ran and lost in Connecticut in 2006. Thank God Joe Lieberman is still our Senator.

These liberals need to be quieted down and taken down a peg or two.

If they would shut their mouths once in a while. The World would be a better place.

More anti-Democracy-GOP un-Americanism.

Dan Tex. I am glad that you confessed you ill doing. And I hope that some day before you Creator you will have the same courage to confess. Always remember this; what you sow you will reap, either here on earth or another dimension. May God bless you.

Its about freaking time he lost!!! We knew that he lost all along! Comedians are dumb for even trying to run for office.

In Response to LOS---------------------

Do you like higher taxes, killing unborn babies, being dependent on foreign oil, same sex marriage, ect...... then come join the Democratic Party.

Al is a joke

the village idiot finally can go away .. so long fankenstein bye bye

O Coleman
O Franken

Fill in the circle for the canidate you want to vote for. Pretty tough. How can this be an issue. Either you filled in the circle or you did not.

I love how the dems are trying to say Coleman is trying to steal the election. I see it as the other way around. I do not want bogus votes counted. If you did not get them in on time or filled the ballot out wrong, then so be it. They should not count. I love how people are trying to determine voter intent. If the box is filled in, count it. If it is not do not count it. Pretty easy. If there were a special vote, Norm would win hands down. Al had the benefit of many Obama supporters blindly voting for him. Take Obama out of the picture, Norm would win by a landslide. I have not talked to anyone that voted for Al.

I can't imagine why anybody would be pushing for Norm Coleman to win, much less be proud of him. But then again, wingers and Rethugs are proud of weird things... Coleman isn't very honest, he doesn't really care much about the people he claims to represent, and he's not the best and brightest. By those lights, I guess he's a great GOPper, but he's not what MN needs right now.

Some comments here seem to say that beause someone says that all votes should be counted that means that they support franken.
makes no difference to me...it is the principal of counting every vote.

Hey Al, snort me a river! You freak, go back to trying to be funny, rambling about on radio stations nobody wants to listen to.

More people liked Tom Davis than you anyways!

Aggression, Suppression, Recession = Republicans. Another election stolen, another hit to Democracy.

Whether these ballots are for Coleman or Franken, it is stupid to reject them. After all, a person's vote no matter what should be counted. What's the sense of voting if a judge or a counter can say...I'[m not going to count your vote. COUNT THE DARN VOTES. GET ON WITH THE RE-COUNT.

There is a God!

Poll worker Dan may just be guilty for voter fraud.

It is pathetic that people still can't figure out how to vote correctly after all this time. They can't push a button, or check a box, or punch a hole in paper without screwing it up?

How do these people fill out their kid's student loan applications, or permission slips for high school, or their taxes? If you can't vote correctly, your vote doesn't count. It's not voter supression or voter theft. It's voter stupidity.

Either people need to be responsible enough to make sure they understand how to vote, what they are voting for, and when they need to vote: or they can just be sheep and bleet on the message boards about how sad and pathetic they are that they are too stupid to comprehend a simple civic duty.

Next we will be seeing Franken on SNL doing a Daily Affirmation skit about himself.

I voted for REAL change. That being Dean Barkley. Still,all we get is the same old politics as usual. NEITHER Franken or Coleman is fit to hold the office of U.S. Senator. The Independence Party (NOT Sarah Palin's bunch of loon-balls) did very well in this election and our day is fast approaching.

I just think it's a shame that people on here are voicing such rude and unfounded remarks about Franken. Ok, he's cursed before, but I'm pretty sure at least 95+ percent of the public have used a swear word in their day. At least he didn't drop the F-bomb on the floor of the Senate. And as for the argument that he's some stupid comedian; being a political satarist requires acute intellegence, particularly with regards to politics. And as to his choice of profession, I'd like to see more diverstiy in our politicians. I'm tired of our country being lead by lawyers. Plus, where were all of you people when we allowed an actor to be president, or a bodybuilder to be governor of CA? So what if he hasn't been a career politician; I think career politicians have been a major problem for this country.

I am trying to figure this out. In this election, the rallying cry is that all of the votes should count, regardless of whether or not they were within the rules. However, in the primaries, the MI and FL votes were cast. But, they didn't count. Why? Because they were not within the rules. So, the rules applied to FL and MI, but they shouldn't apply here. And isn't it interesting that in Obama's first run for office he got his primary opponent's disqualified because of obscure rules violations. So which is it...should we follow the rules or no?

I agree that you are not the sharpest tool in the shed if you can't figure out an absentee ballot. However, if you want America's voice to truly be heard on an election day, then we must be inclusive. After all, America is a country of young and old, rich and poor, native and foreign, smart and yes, stupid. I think instead of throwing all of these votes out they should be individually inspected. If the intent is clear and the voter is eligable and registered, then then the vote should count.

To Dan from Tx:

What you did was not only unethical, but illegal in most states. Telling a voter inside a polling place, whether registered or not at the moment, that their vote "might not count" is giving false information thus misrepresenting your position as a poll worker. And secondly, it goes against federal election laws by your actions to verbally reject or dissaude a citizen from voting as you were representing the elections officer and secretary of state. You should be at the very least barred from working in any state or federal election in the future.

Sheesh!
Wynter

republicans stealing another election

One need only go read the post from Dan, TX to realize why an idiot with a list of failures longer than your arm would go to TX and think he could become its governor. From there the idiot-in-charge rallied the rest of the neo-idiots in this country to become president, and in the process dragged this country into its worst self-induced mess in 80 years. And the idiocy just keeps raining: Dan appears to be one of the "real Americans" that Ms. Palin talked of, celebrating stupid and bigoted behavior as if it should be the goal of every American. Dan, thank you, YOU are the example I turn to when I show my children how NOT to behave as American citizens.

The Dems have not been for big government in 30 years? Have you not seen Obama's agenda? Pull your head out of the sand and give us a break.

Buh bye, Stuart Smalley, you LOST THE ELECTION...... LOSER. GO BACK TO THE BANKRUPT AIR AMERICA. DON'T FORGET TO PAY YOUR TAXES IN NY AND ALL THE OTHER STATES YOU OWE $$ TO.

In the end, there can be only one. The Franken Unit will prevail.

Resistance is Futile.

Greg,

The Dem party hasn't been for big government in 30 years. They do favor actually RUNNING a government properly so it works. Republicans hate government, yet they still want to run it - BADLY.

Look, if you can't execute a ballot properly, then you're not smart enough to have your vote count. Al Franken can lead those 12,000 contested voters in a big group hug and sing "Kumbya" as he's writting a skit for SNL.

Mike from NY.... as a lifelong Democrat still disgusted by the hypocrisy of the Obama campaign during the primaries, I wholeheartedly agree with you.

If you can't follow the directions on an absentee ballot, what makes you think you are able to make an informed decision regarding your vote?

In other words, if you're too stupid that you can't follow directions, then you probably shouldn't be voting in the first place.

OK so Colemans argument is: WHether they were rejected properly or not, too bad, the board has no authority to correct that action, GAME OVER..... Well that doesn't seem too democratic.

I guess the GOP machine can still find a way to lie, cheat and steal an election. How these guys can look themselves in tjhe mirror is beyond me.

Dan TX = UnAmerican

Los November 26th, 2008 12:29 pm ET

Do you like big government, big oil, war, and voter suppression? Then come join the GOP!
*******************************************************************************

Go learn some history. Dems are for big govt. it was Obama's entire plan to help the economy. Btw in 2000 reps were for recounting all votes and dems were for only recounting specific districts.

Your comment tells me that you know only what you see in the media and have no idea why you voted the way you did other than it was the popular thing to do.

Thank God.

Let's see, when the DNC didn't count the primary votes of FL and MI it was because they didn't follow the rules. Now when absentee ballots that don't follow the rules are rejected, the Dems say it's Republican cheating. Well which way do you want it, follow the rules, or not. Don't forget, Obama won his first election by getting the other candidates tossed for not following voter rules. He hasn't seemed to care about counting every vote when the votes aren't for him. You Dems take the prize as hypocrits of the century.

hello November 26th, 2008 1:23 pm ET

Why GOP always in favour of not counting all this vote, when somebody made some mistake if they are handcaped or old or not educated to understand how to vote.
*******************************************************************************

You are a little backward. In 2000 Bush wanted to recount all votes, Gore wanted to only recount districts that voted largely for him. This is something that I hear all the time and have looked it up to confirm that bush wanted to recount all votes.

The way people vote has to change. There is too much room for fraud and unfairness. I hope President-elect Obama nationalizes the election day. It is so important that it should be a holiday. Every state should have the same rules and the same equipment. I heard Washington State has a great system. They vote online so there are no lines and this might be a way of preventing all these other problems because it is tied politically to the election boards and commissions party. This has to change.

Bye Bye Al

Funny thing about all you yelling that every vote should count, you fail to add on your criteria that you share with the Franken campaign "...as long as it's for Franken" Because you know dang well that you, as well as this freak would have any votes for Coleman discounted.

Facts a fact, Franken lost (Thank God). He's just an incredibly sore loser.

Go away Al. While the people of Minnesota were unfortunately not smart enough to not vote in a failed community organizer in as president, they are smart enough to not vote in some washed up, foul-mouthed failure of a radio show host.

Why don't you just go back to NYC and work on another Stuart Smalley movie.

Jeff in Illinois obviously doesn't live in the same Illinois that I do. Democrats have run this state into the ground. We have a zombie problem too, at least on election day. Never too dead to vote in Illinois!

Nothing happens in Illinois without Richard Daley's approval.

Who needs rules and regulations? Let every vote count, Mickey's, Minnie's, the Dallas Cowboy's etc. we want Al Franken.

Hey Sherrol in Canada,

After your done showing us how to run an election, could you please also show us how to give everyone health care, educate our people, give civil rights back, and most importantly show us how to be a peaceful nation once and for all!!!

Dream of a better day,
Brian from Wisconsin

For your information...30-m-PA-Democrat-voted McCain said "Which party decided not to count millions of votes in the FL and MI primaries????!!!!"

The government (DNC and RNC) in those states moved the primary elections and they knew that moving those elections that those votes will not make a difference in the primaries. So do not blame one party or the other because they were both involved.

And to top it off, there are rules to be followed.

Absentee voting is another issue. These votes SHOULD be counted!!!

@ Dan, TX

Seriously, and you are proud of that fact? I certainly hope you are no where near poll places anymore, what a jerk.

MN Resident here:

As it stands now we do not have a voter fraud issue, the perceived problem is trying to pull in votes that are not acceptable under current voting guidelines. It is against the law to change the voting process after the election has occurred. If any changes to the process were to be made, they had to be made somewhere in the realm of 60-90 days prior to the election. Both Norm Coleman & Al Franken agreed to the voting process ahead of time, and now Franken wants to change that process after voting has already taken place. This is why the absentee ballots that were "Erroneous" cannot be counted one way or another. Better luck next time Franken the funny man.

Oh.... HOW SWEET THE MEMORIES ARE OF THE 2000 ELECTION!

If Franken loses maybe Obama can put him in his cabinet as at the court jester. LOL

Dan, TX...worst poll worker ever.

That's weak...yes pitiful that the Republicans seem to always rely on NOT counting votes to win elections.

I have NO confidence in absentee voting any longer. What defines technical problem or "glitches". Moreover how do the citizens know? I'm sure the ballot is tossed and the voter is never told it got rejected.

This is why people should go to the polls to vote or else their votes won't be counted. So much for every vote counts.

This is madness. I think your gov't needs to talk to our gov't about what it takes to run a smooth election.

Funny how most of you who are caliming evil Republicans are behind this haven't been paying attention to the race at all. I find it interesting how Franken has closed the lead when they were counting absentee ballotss before the recount...he was catching up to coleman, yet no other state race was changing...at all...inteesting...

Well if these people are too stupid to follow directions on voting they must be DUMB REDNECKS and we all know they have to be Republicans so that means that those votes should be counted toward Coleman. So us REDNECKS win because the educated Democrats would know how to do a simple task like voting.

I find it hilarious that Liberals want to count the absentee ballots in this case but they refused to count the hundreds of thousands of absentee ballots cast by American soldiers serving overseas during the 2004 election. Hypocrites

THANK GOD!!!!!

I was a poll worker, I turned away plenty of people. Yes, it's true the law says that they have to get a provisional ballot, but I told them it they have to fill out a long form and then their vote probably wouldn't count anyway. So, most of them just left. If they couldn't make sure their registration and everything was perfect before coming to vote, I don't think they deserve to vote. I think there needs to be more education in our public schools and especially in the black community about , because all the people I turned away were black.

For those criticizing and saying "if their too stupid to use the vote correctly they shouldn't be allowed to vote.

I see it differently. Thousands of technicalities in just one state election. If they’re too stupid to be able to read the ballot, then maybe they shouldn’t be on the elections board.

Coleman has served the people well and should be allowed to continue to do so - Finalize the count without bogus votes and lets move on!

well i guess the stupid democrats didnt steal this one

Chris November 26th, 2008 12:32 pm ET

Thank you for pointing out the idiocy of those who are constantly degrading the younger generations of this country.

To those people who think you can't make a wise decision until you're over 65 years old, WE THANK YOU FOR OUR ENORMOUS DEBT, ISOLATIONISM, DEREGULATION, UNSAFE FOODS & DRUGS, JOBLESSNESS, INFLATION, AND GOVERNMENT CORRUPTION. YOU ARE TRULY THE WISE AMONG US! WE SHOULD KEEP THINGS AS THEY HAVE ALWAYS BEEN IN D.C., BECAUSE YOU SAID SO!

In this election year, many many people voted absentee. It's not fair that they would not be counted/recounted. 12,000 is a lot of votes in such a close election.

How can this country that's had a democracy for so many years have such a tough time getting all the votes counted?

So, whats wrong with the absintee ballots? What are the technical problems with the votes?

If you are too stupid to figure out how to Mark a ballot , you are too stupid to vote in the 1st place.

OK – I'm concerned. When I go and cast my vote, what innocent no-no can I commit to make my ballot NOT count? From now on, we need to be instructed by the polling officials when we're at the polls to make sure we do whatever it is that makes a ballot legitimate, and nothing that could come in to question so our ballot is tossed. Not all of these ballots are from the old and or infirmed.

What kind of crap is that? How can they not count the absentee votes? Those are valid votes, done by valid voters. That's blatent voter suppression and it's outrageous.

My understanding was that these votes were originally tossed out because they were not received in time to be counted in the election. Now, if there is a time when voting ends, do we really want to accept votes after that time, in order to "count every vote"? I don't think so. I don't want people voting today for President McCain. Or politicians or their agents hauling in a huge ballot box full of votes three hours after the polls close. Do you?

Why GOP always in favour of not counting all this vote, when somebody made some mistake if they are handcaped or old or not educated to understand how to vote.

All the votes should be counted in any free government. Not counting any votes because of technicalities is a miscarriage of justice, so the courts are going to have to rule on it. If they rule for democracy it's a no brainer.
It should never be about liking or not liking a certain candidate, and that should never impede the outcome in a free election.

see ya Stuart

I would like to see for my self what these so called "questionable ballots" look like. Just curious – a picture may say a thousand words – and erase doubts on both sides.

Robert The Man – November 26th, 2008 12:44 pm ET:
'Al Franken, don't you have some taxes to go pay?'
He paid them, actually he only paid the fines for having made the mistake of paying taxes to the wrong state (NO this is not a joke), because he asked California for an reimbursement and after he got the money back he paid the taxes in the correct state and guess what, he found out that the taxes in California were higher than in Minnesota (so he had paid more than he should all the while)!
Again, this is not a joke, it was an honest mistake that happened when he moved to Minnesota and he paid the taxes and the fines up front.
And it's such an old news anyway.... RtM what are you going to exhume next?

How much is this costing tax payers?????

I have a feeling this fight is just getting started. Sigh.

Can someone establish a procedure in order to make sure every vote count? Where is this country going? Why do we need to "vote" to state that a ballot should be counted or not? I thought there should be rules? If someone broke the rules, they should be punish, like putting the ballot box in an inappropriate place? No one is responsible for anything now! The CEO gets their pay and leave, the politicians can say anything and leave. Now, even the ballots are not accountable, and we need people to vote to say whether certain votes are valid or not! This is utterly nonsense! There should be established procedures to make sure every ballots are safe and sound! If someone infringe that procedures, they should be punished.

Please Franken don't let Coleman and the GOP steal your win, they are known for stealing elections and lying, learn from Al Gore in 2000, do what ever it takes to take Coleman and the GOP down.

LyonsPhilly,

Which party decided not to count millions of votes in the FL and MI primaries????!!!!

An election should be decided by votes, not technicalities. Get it right or let somebody who knows how to do the job take it over.

It's apparent that the only people doing the recount are Republican,Democrats are easy to steal from because they don't seem to know how to count.

Good! This guy is a joke. Go back to SNL.

Larry, SPACE after each comma or period. At least try to seem intelligent. And learn the difference between "there" and "their," which you seem to use interchangeably. Maybe you should realize your politics are as naive and wrong as your punctuation?

It's ashame but this is how the republican's do dirty work they know they were stealing the votes as usual-why not count the votes that were the absentee votes they know who won-but it's how they keep their jobs in cheating-why not count the absentee votes everyone else did-this is ashame but they must realize what goes around comes around-and the republican will not prosper from this-for they are still up to their old tricks but they soon will run out-they know the democrat won the votes-I would persue this to the supreme court if needed-for we don't need another republican in the senate especiall one who cheats if that is the case all of them needs to go we need an all democrate senate and congress-now there!!!!!!!!!1

Excuse me folks, this is America and every vote does count. However, in most elections, a certain number of ballots are thrown out, deemed tainted or otherwise ruled invalid. This is done by Democrats in power as well as Republicans, and has been done many, many times over the years. Stop seeing conspiracies behind everything. Do you want fraudulently cast votes to count? Franken lost, period.

Every vote should be counted....what ever happened to this country.

Welcome aboard, Minnesota!

Sincerely,
Florida

Another whiny Dem. Will they never stop! Franken – You lost – Go back to your day job.

Hey Larry. You sound like the neo-idiots who started this economic mess. Or is it just bad feelings on your part from the election? Poor, poor lad. It must have shocked you when all those democrats went out and voted on their own to defeat your brown-nosed drama-Queen of a candidate. You are just a pathetic sore loser.

GZus, would you go away already Franken!!

It will be fun to see Coleman, after the Franken win, do yet another 180 and insist these votes should be counted. The guy does more 180s than a professional skate-boarder!
Oh, and you people that keep bringing up the taxes thing, please learn the facts, then do the rest of us a favor and shut up. He paid his taxes; he just paid them to the wrong states. So, some states didn't get their taxes, and another got over-paid. If everything goes the way it should, his overpayment will be returned and the states that should already have something will get what they should.

More voter suppression by the Republican Devils.

Rule#1: Did we count all votes? This is the only question to ask.

Chris: Like I said "not a CLUE about politics! Try doing some research on the facts before you spout off ! Start by useing that gray matter inbetween your ears for something other than farting!!!

Give it up Franken, you lost. Stop wasting everybody's time.

I'm sorry, but Al Franken will be like having Palin on our side. Look, the Democrats have successfully branded themselves as the party for the educated decision makers, we do not need someone like Franken on our side. Prevent from being a moving joke, keep people like Franken away from the party.

I think the voters need to know what these "technicalities and errors" are. No vote should EVER be ignored because SOMEONE or SOMEBODIES decided that some procedure was not followed. Heavens, people, doesn't anyone have any common sense?

I am so amazed at how quickly people forget their history and find away to re-invent history all in the same sentence. Even though I may not agree with the decisions of our current president and as a Black American I am excited that forty years ago Martin Luther king was murdered for his believe in equality, that the election of Barak Obama has opened a new chapter in America's short and colorful history. That being said you must know that it was Sen. Al Gore who decided to go to court for a re-count of the vote in Florida and that that Gov. Bush only ensured that if they were going to do a recount that it couldn't be done just in 2 or 3 communities but statewide. Even though the Supreme court stopped this process those votes have been counted and recounted by independent parties with the same results: Gov Bush won. I have no dog in the fight for the dems or reps in Minnesota but please don't misquote history to try an make an invalid point. Thank you

The uncounted absentee ballots may be "crucial" in the sense that they reveal the intent of the voters whose collective voice should determine the outcome of the race.

But what's also crucial is the outcome of the challenges that have been made by the Coleman and, to a lesser degree, the Franken camps, to some of the ballot interpretations made by those doing the recount. When Coleman challenges a ballot because the recount board says the ballot should be counted for Franken, that challenge threatens to disenfranchise a voter every bit as much as a refusal to count an absentee ballot that wasn't properly submitted.

I've heard more intelligent conversations in third grade name calling contests than I read in the majority of these posts.

Most of you are all just a bunch of doo-doo heads.

Chill!

The Gop is "Dead"

It's funny that an independent board rejected Franklin’s request, and every democrat on this board cries foul and says the GOP cheated, you guys need to get a life, it's pathetic how big of cry babies you are.

Well.I just have to add to what has already been stated by many on this blog,and that is,in a democratic election,every vote counts.

Re: earlier comment: “Coleman is a patriot and because of that should win. Franken is a commie and should lose because he hates [A]merica.”
___________________________________________________________________________
As a loyal Democrat, I also do not want Franken to win, because I do not think he is good for the party not for the reasons you espouse, but I respect your right to vote against or for whom ever you want. It is too late to campaign one way or another, but is not too late for Minnesota to stop acting like a “commie” state. Count the votes!!!!!

Even though i never did think Al Frakken was ever funny ,i do think every vote should count.

I mean i must be stupid, because i don't understand why people get to vote but some of their votes are just baseless and don't count, what's the point of voting, these screwed up republican theives are always scamming for their interest. The amazing thing is that this happened before and it's happenning again, how and when will people learn. I can't wait till the day when the GOP brand is nothing but a distant memory who people drank themselves to forget. God say's not to hate, but i think he'll excuse and forgive me for hating this nasty group of people who always use God's name but know nothing about God, it's sad and pathetic if you ask me.

Marian

What happened is Democrats are not capable of doing something on there own,if there was a government program that could have other people vote for them,then they could maybe get it right.If not they could start another program to correct the problems in the first program.

I'd like to know what some of these "technicalities and errors" are. How about some reporting on that?

If it's possible to mess up an absentee ballot, then it's likely that the ballot is too complicated.

VOTER SUPPRESSION... the Republican trade mark!

How do you idiots know that those absentee ballots were cast for Franken? Better yet, How do you think that the Republicans know? If you can't follow simple steps to vote then you shouldn't be allowed to vote, since really don't know what the heck is going on.

I can't believe there are so many spineless sheep in this country, it's no wonder the world laughs at us.

wow we have alot of idiots in here who quickly point out that the GOP canidate was trying to block some votes without even considering that the Democrat canidate is doing the same thing.

Hypocrits, all of you.

Hey do not count these votes but I want to count those votes. BOTH PARTIES ARE DOING IT IN THIS RECOUNT SO PLEASE QUIT ATTACKING THE OTHER PARTY WHEN YOUR PARTY IS DOING IT TOO.

Good who cares.

I smell a rat!

This is America.
Every vote is supposed to count.
What's the problem?

Al Franken, don't you have some taxes to go pay?

Count all the votes

You can not have honest politicians with a dishonest voting process. All votes must be counted. Voting is an absolute right and not a privlidge. One man, be he homeless or a busisness leader, one vote. A ballot marked with an X vs. a filled in circle is valid. A ballot with a political statement in the write in box (not a persons name) is also valid. A ballot where one candadate was marked and then crossed out, with another candidate selected, is valid. A valid Senate vote is valid even if a vote for Congress, on the same form, is invalid. Many people have handicaps with holding a pen; a smudgy filled in oval is valid.

I am an Independent and both candidates SUCK....

They're desperate down in Georgia too, ready to say or do anything to save their last few Senate seats, even gritting their teeth and pretending Saxby Chambliss is a functional senator. Throwing out votes is the way they elected Curious George, remember, and it may work again; if not, there's always Caribou Barbie!
Minnesota, scrub that floor. Ecch.

Yeah, THE DIRTY DEMS HAVE BEEN TRYING TO STEAL THE VOTES ALL OVER THE COUNTRY! HOW SAD IS THAT? NOBODY WANTS AL FRANKENSTEIN JUST BECAUSE HE'S A WASHED UP NO GOOD BUM FROM SNL! SORRY! SAME THING IN OHIO – MARY JO KILROY TRYING TO STEAL VOTES FROM STEVE STIVERS. GIVE IT UP. YOU ALREADY BOUGHT YOUR WAY INTO THE WHITE HOUSE – WE DON'T WANT ANY MORE DIRTY DEMS!!!!!!!!!

Absentee bailouts again? Wow, we are fast approaching/mirroring 3rd world/communist countries corrupt behavior!

These ballots are being thrown out because they were improperly filed out or because they were suspiciously marked. As someone who voted absentee in Minnesota for this election, I can tell you that it's incredibly easy to fill one out properly and it would also be incredibly easy to fake one as well. The canvasing board was right to toss them out.

Also, to the partisan tools who are insisting that the Republicans are stealing the election, cheating, etc.: the canvasing board is comprised of members of both major parties and is run by DFLer Mark Ritchie. There's no way that the Republicans could steal this election because they're not in the position to do so.

This is just sad for our counrtry,

We can build a space to travel millions of miles outer space.
We can build great machines to help out our doctors.
We can build cars
We can build planes
We can build boats
We can build the iphone
We can build mp3 players
We can build computers
We can build digital cameras
We can build fax machines
We can build Xboxes 1, 2, 3
We can build DS video games

BUT WE CANT BUILD A SYSTEM TO ENSURE THAT EVERY VOTE IS COUNTED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Shameful. Republicans STINK.

GOP strategy for winning elections: suppress the vote.....failing in that, make sure not all the votes are counted.

Dear "John."

You wrote:

"If you can't get to a polling place on election day, voting probably isn't very important to you ('specially since there is now early voting in many states)…"

I take it you've never been in the military. Deployed folk have no other choice. I'm sure they'd rather go back to their home states to cast their ballots, but it's probably a bit difficult to run to a Minnesota (in this case) polling place from Iraq or Afghanistan and make it back in time for their patrol.

@ clifford November 26th, 2008 12:20 pm ET

Franken had the same voter perscription that got Obama elected, young voters without a CLUE about politics!!!

-----------
And your age gives you a "clue" and has made future generations lifestyle better/safer??? Need I mention Social Security, N. Debt, isolated USA, the little bubble we're in, pollution in our food sources etc. etc. Typical old fart, think they know everything.

Count all of the votes. It is american, it is constitutional, and it is right. Even if it means losing the election, a true leader should fight to make sure that all Americans who have cast their ballot are counted. Don't stop fighting. Don't let these un-American values suppress the votors right to have their vote count!

Coleman is a patriot and because of that should win.

Franken is a commie and should lose because he hates america.

Also, please, if these were votes that could potentially favor Coleman, all you GOPers would be demanding that they be counted, so please cut out all the sanctimonious crap.

Lilarose in Bandon, Oregon,

Hey Lilarose, why should somebody be denied benefits because of how they voted. I was a proud supporter of John McCain but I respect the decision of the people. At least I have some respect for the highest office in the country. And tom, this has nothing to do with Republicans or Democrats, judges are NONPARTISAN. So if Coleman wins fair and square, so be it and vice versa.

Lilarose in Bandon, Oregon,

Hey Lilarose, why should somebody be denied benefits because of how they voted. I was a proud supporter of John McCain but I respect the decision of the people. At least I have some respect for the highest office in the country. And tom, this has nothing to do with Republicans or Democrats, judges are NONPARTISAN. So if Coleman wins fair and square, so be it and vice versa.

Do you like big government, big oil, war, and voter suppression? Then come join the GOP!

Let all the votes count why exclude any votes what's the poit in having an election anyway if you don't count the votes, and I mean all the votes!

REPUBLICANS STEALING WHAT THEY CAN!

Sounds like the work of Katherine Harris.

Yes, but I heard that Franken knew that when he challenged the ballots. When it goes to court, they don't want to hear from the judge ask why didn't they challenge anything back when they could.

Even if those voters couldn't be "bothered" to take the time to sign the outer envelope which housed their ballet? Most of these ballets were rejected because they were missing elements which are used to prevent mulitple votes (ie the Signature on the OUTER envelope).

You can register to vote the day of the election in Minnesota; if you start accepting ballets which have no signature, or the other REQUIRED elements, it's a very slippery slope. What's to stop me or anyone else from filling out absentee ballot, "forgetting" to sign my name, and then showing up at my local polling precent to vote there as well.

To y'all that say every vote should be counted – should fraudulent votes be tallied? Absentee ballots are the ones most likely to have a problem since zero oversight was given during the casting. Why anyone would support mail-in absentee ballots in the first place is beyond me. If you can't get to a polling place on election day, voting probably isn't very important to you ('specially since there is now early voting in many states)...

Well Michael M., where was your God in heaven when he allowed you to vote for the current obscenity-in-charge twice?

Franken is a smart person and will do well in the senate representing the people of Minn. You might not like his humor, and what he did in his old jobs, but that is your ideologic preference....and it has no bearing on his innate intelligence and ability as a senator. On the other hand, I guess you'd be pleased to continue with G. Bush's butt-kisser, the intellectually lame Coleman....but with Bush gone, who's hind-end will Coleman go looking for? Indeed, what HAS BEEN wrong with Minn. that they allowed this neo-dimwit to represent them for the past 6 years?

Voter suppression: When you absolutely, positively cannot win an election on your own merits, that’s our Normie.

@Obama08 - For some people it wasn't a case of following instructions. For one person it was a case where her signature didn't match. She had a stroke between registering and voting, and was no longer able to perform her original signature. Her vote was allegedly not counted.

Mr. Noonan, please don't talk about Norm Coleman that way. I DO agree with you, but don't be mean.

So Minnesota thinks that absentee ballots don't count? Then why issue them in the first place?

Also remind Michael Noonan that Minnesota also elected Jesse Ventura for governor, who was no more qualified than Franken.

Franken had the same voter perscription that got Obama elected, young voters without a CLUE about politics!!!

I wonder what the absentee voters think of that. This smacks of the same influence the Sec. of State in Florida used to get Bush elected. Time for these people to pay consequences for their influence peddling. I hope the citizens of Minnesota get mad enough to insist on their rights.

MN GOP and the rethugs trying to steal this election – It's like FLA deja vu' all over again.

Hey DNC – Get your butt in gear this time – Don't let 'em steal another one!

If the voter's intent can be clearly determined, the ballot ought to count.

I hope the idiot third-party jerk who sucked off votes from Franken is held accountable for keeping Norm Coleman, if the count goes badly. Head-to-head, Franken would have clobbered him!

Can you believe that some of those votes were not filled out properly? I mean come one people!!! How difficult is it to fill in a circle?

if coleman stays in it will be a sad day here in minnesota..coleman has been bushes little brown noser for too long he must go. if franken doesnt win then we willknow the republicans cheated

Every one of those votes are important and should be counted.People spent hours in long line for their votes not to be counted.Shame on those who voted against. What EXAMPLE is being set by America to the WORLD.

Oh boy; the hanging chads voter intent guessing game again, all to boost a poor wacky democrat who lost into winning!

Hmm.. my bro doesnt like Franken. I dont know much about him.

Too bad Minnesotans who didn't support Franken can't be eliminated from any help that Obama's "change" will provide, and I think there will be positive change.

It is totally beyond my how anyone could want one Republican to be in office in these times.

Who do they think is responsible for our miserable national situation? Still blaming the Clinton administration?

Foolish

Honor this nation......count ALL votes.

Sounds like the Ghost of Florida Past.

The decision today was that the board could not make that decision, its for the courts. Every vote should be counted, but if you cant follow directions the vote shouldnt count. Its not that hard.

Michael M. Noonan, I have a question for you.

Do you consider our current president, George Bush, a 'Walking Obscenity'?

If the answer is no, What is wrong with you?

Yeah!!!

What I want to know is, why can't somebody come up with a ballot simple enough to fill out to avoid 12,000 "errors" and "technicalities"?

All votes should be counted.... there can't be THOUSANDS of votes where these morons cannot decide the INTENT of the voter.... Rejecting votes on "technicalities" is far too vague and is not acceptable.

These "technicalities" could include things have nothing to do with the specific election race here. Like the ballot was signed in the wrong place, or there's a problem with some OTHER election race that has nothing to do with the senatorial race.

COUNT THE VOTES

You win some, you lose some. I expect Al to accept this and not go histrionic. His victory, if he has one, must be crisp and honest, not murky and questionable.

finally maybe some type of justice!! just want it to be fair and it was very very suspicious about these votes!! Franken was too sure of himself on that. He may still win (hope not) but at least do it fair! I feel sorry for Minnesota having to put up with such an idiot!!

Count all votes! Anyone that takes the time to vote should certainly know their vote was counted. If not, why bother?

i THOUGHT EVERY VOTE COUNTS... WHAT HAPPENED? CALL IN THE LAWYERS!!!

If there is a God in heaven, this walking obscenity will not be allowed on the floor of the Senate. What is wrong with Minn.?

how sad the evil republicans will cheat to win.