[cnn-photo-caption image= http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/2009/images/01/05/art.getty.norm.coleman.jpg caption="Minnesota's high court denied Sen. Norm Coleman's campaign request to consider rejected ballots."]MINNEAPOLIS, Minnesota (CNN) - In a move that leaves a post-election legal challenge the last remaining hope for Republican Sen. Norm Coleman, Minnesota's high court has denied his campaign's request to consider about 650 additional rejected absentee ballots his attorneys claimed should have been included in the count of mistakenly rejected ballots that were tallied this weekend.
The Coleman campaign had contended there was no uniform standard for local officials and campaigns to review and tabulate these improperly rejected ballots. The court had previously ordered that only ballots local officials and both campaigns could agree were rejected in error could be counted. A consensus was met on about 950 of 1,350 originally found by local officials.
The court order suggested Coleman's latest request should be a post-election consideration.
The Coleman camp said it was determined to take the question to court. "Today’s ruling, which effectively disregards the votes of hundreds of Minnesotans, ensures that an election contest is now inevitable,” said Coleman attorney Fritz Knaak. “The Coleman campaign has consistently and continually fought to have every validly cast vote counted, and for the integrity of Minnesota’s election system, we will not stop now. The Minnesota Supreme Court has made sure that an election contest will need to be filed quickly in order to ensure that an accurate and valid recount can be achieved.”
Minnesota's state canvassing board is expected to name Democrat Al Franken the winner of the recount later Monday. Franken now leads Coleman by a margin of 225 votes.
If you don't election results, simply "recount" until you win!
Sounds like Sen. Franken is coming to town. Good for him!
so Coleman wants to just keep on counting until he wins?
Oh yea, he's a republican...how typical!
Can we say cry baby republicans.
Ha-Ha – American courts are no longer going to allow themselves to be used so you Idiot Republicans can steal an election. Bye Bye Coleman go hang-out with the rest of the losers.
Mr. Coleman is correct when he claims that there is/was no uniform state-wide standard for handling these ballots. The standard (or standards) are set at lower levels in that state. But the time to change such standards is before the election, not after the election when you have lost given those standards.
IMHO the court made the correct ruling. But I am highly amused because this is the exact scenerio from Florida in 2000, when the Florida Supreme Court decided to supercede existing law and attempt to recount the ballots using newly imposed standards, which the US Supreme Court (by a 7-2 vote) shot down.
The Republicans will whine that they got screwed here. But hey, the Democrats have never stopped whining about Florida 2000.
another of bushes croneys bite the dust.good bye coleman another bush looser.
Time to go back to eating corn through a picket fence Norm.
another of bushes croneys bite the dust.good bye coleman another bush looser.
Now, maybe this dweeb will finally take a hike.
“The Coleman campaign has consistently and continually fought to have every validly cast vote counted", of course, NOW we fight to count votes, but when you're ahead, you fight counting absentee votes and even holding the recount in the first place. It's time you listen to what everyone is saying and bow out gracefully.
Looks like great minds think alike Deb.
Anyone else here circus music?
Good riddance, Coleman! All you ever did was kiss up to Bush and Cheney anyway, the absolute last thing we needed then OR now!
Naa Naa na na Naa Naa na na, Hey Hey GOODBYE........
Coleman has done nothing for the great state of Minnesota. He has been a totally inept Senator. I am no Franken fan, but it speaks VOLUMES ABOUT WHAT THE PEOPLE THINK ABOUT COLEMAN, for him to be beaten by a hack comedian. Give it up Comena, you had you chance in office and you failed the people who elected you. Franken, this is a gift to you, do your best, the standard Coleman has set these past few years won't be hard to beat.
When a republican says he wants all valid votes counted, you should be very cautious...remember Florida 2000?
Senator Al Franken....see Bill O'Reilly & Fat Limbaugh's heads explode...
Wait a minute, Al Franken won then? LOL!!!!!!!!!!!!!
That's it!! That's my day for today, I'm done! LOL!!
It's time to move on Coleman. You lost, show some dignity and congratulate Franken.
Wow!!!!
Frankenstein goes to Washington.
Hey!.., maybe they'll do a reality show, the misadventures of the Munsters who never quite realise why people react to them so strangely, oh wait..
Whether it's Coleman of Franken, the people of Minoseta will still be represented in Washington. So why is Coleman so avid to be the winner? Sorry, I forgot, power, money, lavishness, no tax, call-girls, extorsion, embezzlement, everything, but the people of Minoseta.
Go ahead guys, do your things.
Let's all sing: "Another one bites the dust"
George Soros & ACORN win another one. Now can the libs stop their whining about the 2000 election. How many appointed libs are there in Congress now?
8 years ago, when the Democrats filed legal challenges to continue counting in Florida, the Republican party painted them as sore losers... and continued this argument until very recently. Now, when the same thing happens to them, all of a sudden its the Democrats who are stealing the election and there needs to be more litigation.
Face it, thanks to Bush v. Gore, the precedent is set. Sorry Coleman, your time is done.