Five Votes Will Now Decide Minnesota Senate Race

Minnesota's Senate race now comes down to 5 votes

By PAT DOYLE, Star Tribune

Last update: May 30, 2009 - 10:11 PM



Now it comes down to five votes.

Almost seven months after a U.S. Senate election that was too close to call, five justices of the Minnesota Supreme Court will hear arguments Monday on whether problems with absentee ballots justify reversing a lower-court ruling that declared DFLer Al Franken a 312-vote winner over Republican Norm Coleman.

Partisans across America will be watching, pronouncing judgment on a thousand blogs. The case may cast a blinding national spotlight on the state Supreme Court.

A decision upholding the lower-court ruling could end the protracted struggle and allow Franken to join the Senate, giving Democrats an invincible majority. A ruling for Coleman wouldn't return him to the Senate, but could keep his hopes alive and delay a final decision for months.

Minnesotans want the dispute to end, recent polls show. Most people say Coleman should concede. Nearly two-thirds believe that Franken ultimately will be declared the winner.

But several former Minnesota Supreme Court justices say current members will consider the case carefully, ignoring outside publicity and pressure.

"The impatience of the people just has to be put aside," said former Associate Justice Jim Gilbert, who served on the court for seven years with most of the justices hearing the case. "You want a correct decision at this stage, not a fast decision.

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In your dreams. There may well be 60 people who identify themselves as members of the Democratic Party in the Senate, but with the Blue Dogs, Joe Lieberman, Arlen Spectre, etc., there isn't the guaranteed block of votes for liberal issues that the lock-step Repugs would have. We'll have to fight our way though every progressive issue -- health care, Iraq, environment -- just as if the GOP still held the majority, and in the end we'll have watered-down bills which will be written for the most part by the corporations. It'll just take them a little longer to get their way than it did when the Repugs held power.

Coleman just didn't like the call. So now he gets a "do-over"?

Too right he should concede.

Therefore, he's gonna win.

as opposed to the speculative opinions we read from other DUers based only on what they think. This is the MN Supreme Court that named the 3 judge panel for this case, each of whose rulings were unanimous. I anticipate a very fair decision from a very honest court that is held in high esteem regardless of their party affiliation.