1,530 absentee votes, but little change (Franken-Coleman race)

Source: Pioneer Press

Registration-card count too low to put a big dent in Franken's lead
By Jason Hoppin
jhoppin@pioneerpress.com
Posted: 03/10/2009 12:01:00 AM CDT

More than 1,500 previously rejected absentee votes in the 2008 U.S. Senate race have been opened, and the result was something akin to Geraldo Rivera cracking Al Capone's vault ...

Under orders from a three-judge panel overseeing an election lawsuit, local election officials found registration cards for only 84 of those ballots, the secretary of state's office said Monday — not enough to be a game-changer in Republican Norm Coleman's quest to close Democrat Al Franken's 225-vote lead in the U.S. Senate race ...

On Monday, results were announced. Deputy Secretary of State Jim Gelbmann said that in addition to the 84, five registration cards were located by local elections officials among election materials but outside the secrecy envelope. Another 72 ballots contained registration cards that were improperly filled out, Gelbmann said ...

Of the 89, the largest number — about 15 or 16, Gelbmann said — was from Olmsted County, which favored Coleman in the Nov. 4 election. But another eight were from heavily Democratic Minneapolis, and seven were from Ramsey County, also a Democratic stronghold ...

Read more: http://www.twincities.com/politics/ci_11874771?nclick_check=1

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Senate recount trial updates: 80 registration forms, ‘shrinking’ Coleman ballot universe and Bell case
By Jay Weiner | Published Mon, Mar 9 2009 5:54 pm
As reported earlier today, about 80 voter registration forms were found when election officials statewide opened about 1,540 absentee ballot secrecy envelopes last week ... The finding of 80 registered voters means that about 1,460 of those ballots were cast by unregistered voters. The Franken and Coleman sides estimate that about half of those 1,500 ballots were on their lists of ballots they wanted to be examined by the three-judge panel. Thus Coleman’s universe of legally cast ballots that his side wants opened may now be as low as 1,000, if not lower. Last week in court, the Coleman side said it still believed there were 1,725 ballots out there worthy of being opened ... http://www.minnpost.com/politicalagenda/2009/03/09/7264/senate_recount_trial_updates_80_registration_forms_‘shrinking’_coleman_ballot_universe_and_bell_case


Coleman Camp Insists On More Ballots Being In Play
By Eric Kleefeld - March 9, 2009, 6:09PM
The Coleman camp is reacting to the discovery of only 89 "3-A" rejected ballots -- absentee ballots that contained registration forms inside the inner secrecy envelope, rather than immediately within the outer envelope -- and insisting that the real number is much bigger. The short version: In order to win, Coleman needs to expand the universe of countable ballots. But this expansion was much smaller than some expected, out of the 1,500 ballots that were searched. At his post-court press conference, Coleman legal spokesman Ginsberg boasted that the search "found between 100 and 150 that were wrongly rejected and should be put in. so that gives you an increasing idea that the universe of ballots with which we're dealing continues to fluctuate." What Ginsberg is relying on is the addition of 72 more envelopes that had incomplete registration cards, and are unlikely to be included under the court's strict standards for letting in new ballots -- a point that the Coleman camp seems sure to appeal ... http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2009/03/coleman-camp-insists-on-more-ballots-being-in-play.php

Smaller vote pool may hurt Coleman
By PAT DOYLE and KEVIN DUCHSCHERE, Star Tribune staff writers
Last update: March 9, 2009 - 9:21 PM
... It was not known for whom the ballots were cast, but two-thirds of those containing valid registrations are from counties that Coleman carried on Nov. 4. Because of the size of his deficit, Coleman needs to put a substantial number of new ballots in play. The 700 secrecy envelopes that he identified for inspection were among thousands of ballots that he has claimed may have been improperly rejected ...

Nearly 90 previously rejected ballots may be added to Coleman/Franken tally
By PAUL SCHMELZER 3/9/09 1:00 PM
... Twenty-eight of the ballots were from counties that Al Franken won, and the remainder were from counties Coleman won:
Anoka (C), 1; Clay (C), 4; Crow Wing (C), 1; Dakota (C), 15; Faribault (C), 1; Goodhue (C), 1; Hennepin (F), 15 (Brooklyn Center, 1; Corcoran, 1; Edina, 1; Maple Grove, 2; Minneapolis, 8; Plymouth, 2); Koochiching (F), 1; McLeod (C), 3; Morrison (C), 1; Mower (F), 3; Olmsted (C), 15; Polk (C), 1; Pope (C), 1; Ramsey (F), 6; Steele (C), 1; Swift (F), 1; Washington (C), 14; Winona (F), 2; Wright (C), 1 ... http://minnesotaindependent.com/28488/nearly-90-previously-rejected-ballots-may-be-added-to-colemanfranken-tally

So a crude guess might be that Franken still leads by 225 + 28 - (89 - 28) = 192. The election was 18 weeks ago: Norm's picking off the lead at about one vote every five days. At that rate, chewing up Franken's 192 vote lead is only going to take another 2 years, 8 months -- or just about exactly three years from the original election day. Get over it, Norm: you lost

ARGH.

Poor Franken. He ran against a braindead, crap piece of energetic, well-funded shit.

fighting so hard against Al ?

Once Franken is seated it is over, right?

members, so if the Senate seats Franken, I'd say it's over. Coleman might go to the Supreme Court and the Senate may well reject what the court might say, something the Court doesn't want to happen.

Coleman just keeps beating that dead horse.

he said that the contest is coming to its end.