All Blog Posts from Political Hotsheet

Democrat Al Franken said today that he "can't wait to get started" in the U.S. Senate following a nearly eight-month legal battle with former rival Norm Coleman.

Franken, accompanied by his wife and amid cheers from supporters, said he had received a "very gracious call" from Coleman, who earlier conceded the Minnesota Senate race after the Minnesota Supreme Court ruled against him in an appeal over disputed absentee ballots.

Franken's final margin of victory over Coleman was just 312 votes out of 2.9 million cast.

Franken said he and his family are "so thrilled that we can finally celebrate this victory, and I am so excited to finally be able to get to work for the people of Minnesota."

"I know there's been a lot of talk about the fact that when I'm sworn in I'll be the sixtieth member of the Democratic caucus," Franken said, a reference to the fact that his presence in the Senate gives Democrats a filibuster proof majority. "But that's not how I see it."

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Updated 6:03 p.m. ET

Nearly eight months after voters went to the polls, the Minnesota Senate race has finally yielded a winner: Democrat Al Franken.

Republican Norm Coleman conceded his loss in a press conference Tuesday afternoon, saying he has called to congratulate the former comedian on his victory. His statement came after the Minnesota Supreme Court unanimously rejected his appeal of a lower court ruling in Franken's favor.

"The Supreme Court of Minnesota has spoken," Coleman said. "I respect its decision and will abide by its result."

Coleman could have appealed the state court decision in the federal courts, though polls indicate that Minnesota voters wanted the legal battle between the onetime bitter rivals to draw to a close. The former senator said he believed that "it is time now to move forward."

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UPDATED 4:18 p.m. ET

NOTE: Coleman has now conceded and congratulated Franken on his victory. Read more here.

Former Senator Norm Coleman has lost his appeal to the Minnesota Supreme Court, paving the way for Democrat Al Franken to join the Senate and give his party a filibuster-proof majority – though Coleman's could still appeal the decision in U.S. federal court.

"We affirm the decision of the trial court that Al Franken received the highest number of votes legally cast" in the election, the decision states. The justices also explicitly ruled that Franken is "entitled" under Minnesota law to receive the certificate of election as senator.

The judges stated that Coleman has "not shown that the trial court's findings of fact are clearly erroneous or that the court committed an error of law or abused its discretion." They ruled unanimously for Franken, 5-0.

"Coleman has exhausted all of his state legal options at this point," said CBS News political director Steve Chaggaris. "His choice now is to either appeal to federal courts or concede."

There are three things you can count on in life: Death, taxes, and the fact that the Minnesota Senate race, much like the typical middle school talent show, will seemingly never end.

The latest development in the nearly-seven-month-long saga comes today, as lawyers for former Senator Norm Coleman ask the Minnesota Supreme Court to overturn Democrat Al Franken's slim victory over his Republican rival.

Here's a brief recap of the situation so far: On November 4th of last year - that's nearly seven months ago - Minnesota voters cast their ballots. The initial results showed a narrow Coleman victory, but the tight outcome triggered an automatic recount - after which Franken had a narrow lead.

Then came months of legal wrangling, which culminated in a judicial panel declaring Franken the winner of the election by 312 votes. Coleman appealed that decision, which is why the case now stands before the state Supreme Court.

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Vice President Joe Biden met today in Washington with Democrat Al Franken, who has been declared the victor in the seemingly-never-ending Minnesota Senate race pending Norm Coleman's appeals.

In a statement following the meeting, the vice president pushed for Franken to be seated as soon as the Minnesota Supreme Court rules. The Democrat was declared the narrow winner of the race by a three judge panel following a statewide recount.

"Once the Minnesota Supreme Court has issued its final ruling in this case, the President and I look forward to working with Mr. Franken on building an economy for the 21st century,” he said.

"The election process and recount in Minnesota have lived up to the state's reputation for organization, transparency, and bipartisanship," Biden added. "The officials have been meticulous and every ruling has been unanimous."

That's a very different tone than that struck by national Republicans, who have raised money for Coleman's continuing legal battle. They have also suggested that the votes of all Minnesotans have not been counted. If seated, Franken would be the 60th member of the Democratic caucus in the Senate, giving the party a filibuster-proof majority.

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Former Senator Norm Coleman, who is appealing his loss to Democrat Al Franken in the Minnesota Senate race to the Minnesota Supreme Court, yesterday asked the court not to take up his appeal too quickly.

Coleman wants the case "argued no sooner than mid-May," reports the Star Tribune – two weeks later than Franken would like to see the court take up the case.

As the Trib notes, Coleman's team says it wants the case argued "as expeditiously as possible," but add that their lawyers "must be given enough time to fully develop and consider the issues on appeal."

Franken was declared the winner of the extraordinarily close election following a recount, and the appeal is the latest volley in a protracted court battle over which ballots should and should not be counted.

National Republicans, who benefit from keeping Franken's vote out of the Senate, have called for donations to help Coleman continue his legal fight.

Back in November, Coleman called for Franken to drop out of the race after initial Election Day results showed Coleman with a slight lead over his rival.

Former Republican Sen. Norm Coleman of Minnesota today filed a notice indicating that he is appealing his apparent election loss to the Minnesota Supreme Court.

Last week, a three-judge panel determined that, following a recount and months of legal wrangling, Democrat Al Franken had ultimately secured 312 more votes than Coleman in their battle for a Minnesota Senate seat.

The panel indicated Franken should be declared the winner of the race. Coleman's legal team maintains that 4,400 absentee ballots went uncounted.

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Former Republican Minnesota Sen. Norm Coleman sued after the recount in his razor-close election battle with Democrat Al Franken, above, showed the former comedian with a 225 vote lead, setting off a legal battle that has dragged for months.

The results of that lawsuit, however, appear to have helped Franken more than Coleman, at least for the time being.

Franken today extended his lead by almost 100 votes, and he now leads Coleman by 312, reports the Associated Press.

Last week, the three-judge panel hearing the case allowed for 351 additional contested absentee ballots to be counted. The count, which happened today, netted Franken more votes than it did Coleman.

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It’s been more than four months since Election Day 2008, and yet the Minnesota Senate fight between Democrat Al Franken and Republican incumbent Norm Coleman continues, excruciatingly, to drag on.

A quick summary of how we got here: Initial returns after Election Day showed a narrow win by Coleman, who promptly called for Franken to concede for the good of the state. Franken declined to do so, and following a recount, the Democrat came out on top. (The margin? 225 votes, out of 2.9 million cast.)

With Franken now ahead, Coleman, no longer a fan of expediency, took the election to the courts; Franken, in turn, filed his own challenges. And now, four months after the election, Minnesotans still do not have a second senator.

"We have been through a canvass, a hand recounting, a state canvassing board hearing, a seven-week trial and several trips to the state Supreme Court," Franken attorney Marc Elias told the Los Angeles Times. "When I landed in Minneapolis on Nov. 7, I never imagined it would last this long."

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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.”

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