Court Rejects Franken Petition To Be Seated

By: Brian Montopoli
Topics: Election 2008

(CBS/AP)

Democrat Al Franken has lost a bid to force Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty and Secretary of State Mark Ritchie to sign an election certificate that would allow him to be seated in the Senate.

For months, Franken and Republican rival Norm Coleman have been embroiled in legal battles over who actually won the Minnesota Senate election in November. While the results initially showed a Coleman victory, a recount found that Franken led by 225 votes.

Before the recount, Coleman called for Franken to concede the election; afterward, he took the matter to the courts. Franken has also filed legal challenges. Both sides have sued to have rejected absentee ballots – at least, the ones most likely to favor them – counted. Coleman has tried to have the recount results thrown out. (For more, see our update here.)

Following today's decision, the Coleman camp sent out a release trumpeting the "wise ruling will ensure that Harry Reid, Al Franken and Chuck Schumer cannot short-circuit Minnesota Law in their partisan power play."

"Despite Al Franken's efforts to disenfranchise thousands of Minnesota voters, Norm Coleman is committed to ensuring a legal and fair election," said Coleman spokesman Ben Ginsberg.

How do Minnesotans feel about the ongoing standoff? Forty-six percent want a revote, according to a Rasmussen Reports poll, while 44 percent do not – which, considering the margin of error, amounts to a tie.

No figures were offered on the percentage who simply wants the whole thing to go away.

Brian Montopoli
Brian Montopoli is the senior political reporter at CBSNews.com.
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by bumpedoff March 8, 2009 8:38 PM EDT: rerun the show; Reply to this comment


by starleo146 March 8, 2009 6:53 PM EDT: There is something un-American about this, that a man in Nov. was elected by the people and this incumbent doesn't want to give up his seat so he ties it up in court for what till 2010 . This stinks to high heaven and the courts up there need to speed up the pony show and let the man who won be seated as a United States Senator. Make some rules so this never happens again.; Reply to this comment


by actornaught March 7, 2009 7:27 PM EST: Coleman has as much class as a styrofoam cup. The election was decided. Al Gore gave up the presidency faster for less reason.; Reply to this comment


by hopetrumps March 7, 2009 2:12 PM EST: How long are these persnickety justices going to deprive their own state of its duly elected Senator, Al Franken? He won by 225 votes, it should be enough if he only won by one----besides that the great majority of voters of the Libertarian candidate preferred Franken over Coleman, if it had been a 2-candidate race---this according to scientific exit surveys. It's nice that Minnesotans pride themselves on fairness and intelligence, but this is getting ridiculous, self-defeating, and really really stupid.; Reply to this comment


by cheteunice March 7, 2009 12:08 PM EST: frameworker, 'Percent can take a singular or plural verb, depending on how the quantity being described is viewed. Very often what determines the form of the verb is the noun nearest to it. Thus one might say Eighty percent of the legislators are going to vote against the bill or Eighty percent of the legislature is set to vote the bill down. In the second sentence the group of legislators is considered as a body, not as individuals. When percent is used without a following prepositional phrase, either a singular or plural verb is acceptable.'; Reply to this comment


by ioweign March 6, 2009 11:43 PM EST: A revote is not an opinion under the Recount Law so the Rasmussen Poll asked an invalid question...; Reply to this comment


by bmontopoli March 6, 2009 5:14 PM EST: frameworker -- I had the same instinct. But I deferred to Uncle Bill (that is, Microsoft Word spell check). I think "percentage" is actually singular, since we are talking about a set number, even if it represents a group of people. I'm not 100 percent sure on that, though.; Reply to this comment


by frameworker March 6, 2009 4:31 PM EST: In the last sentence, "percentage" is a plural noun so the verb should be "want," not "wants." (Although I could be wrong about this, editor?); Reply to this comment