MN Sen Recount (UPDATE: Stuart Smalley certified winner, lawsuit forthcoming)

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

The last is probably from some poll worker who mishandled the ballot and left his/her fingerprint on the ballot.

Very unlikely. How ballots are handled is you fill out your ballot, and then carry it to the ballot machine in either a folder or some sort of metal carrier (basically designed to protect the privacy of your ballot. You then slide it into the machine. If a poll worker handled the ballot, it would have to be after voting and I'm sure the way the machines are set up to remove the ballots for a recount is designed to avoid this sort of thing.

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

BTW I assume when Sam says "anti-BRTD suburbs" he means places like Wright and Sherburne and not Washington and Dakota right? Though granted the former weren't THAT much stronger for Coleman than the latter.

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

BTW I assume when Sam says "anti-BRTD suburbs" he means places like Wright and Sherburne and not Washington and Dakota right? Though granted the former weren't THAT much stronger for Coleman than the latter.

Yes.  I was referring more to %-wise, as opposed to overall numbers.

Even percentage-wise there's only about a five-point difference. Those counties are much stronger for Republicans in blowout DFL elections (like how they voted for Mark Kennedy) and presidential than close elections where the Republican runs well in the inner-middle suburbs.

Although it doesn't apply to the former list that much, Scott also doesn't start counting until December 3

Actually I put Scott in that category as well. After all it gave Coleman over 50%.

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

How can anyone know the partisan biases of those who can't mark their ballots properly?  One can assume they match their region, are more Dem, are old, or whatever. Who knows? I don't trust much projections here. I suspect given the ballot design, it is mostly old folks.

I explained this before:

When you insert your ballot into the machine, it either accepts it and counts it if it is accurate, or lets you know there's an error if there is. If there is, you can either count it and not have the votes for the improperly voted offices count, or have it returned, where it'll be destroyed and you'll get a new ballot. Of course if someone has been in line forever, they'll probably just want to leave, and may accept the spoiled ballot. This actually happened with the person in front of me. And we all know where the long lines with people more likely to do this were...

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

1- Franken. That's an arrow? LOL.
2-Though I explained this is very unlikely to be from a poll worker, I'd say count it.
3-Close enough to Franken.
4-Franken. Quite clear.
5-I actually LOLed out loud at this one. No write-in oval filled, so for Franken.
6-Franken. The check is clear enough. This person must be a high school dropout though.
7-The bubble is large enough to count as an overvote. Reject it.
8-This is different. That dot looks like a mistake. Franken.
9-This county must not use pens like we do. And this shows why pens are good. But yeah, Barkley.
10-That Coleman argument is hilarious. Obvious Barkley.
11-OK yeah, dumb argument on Franken's part. This is a clear overvote, and should be rejected.

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

OMG OPTICAL SCAN AND PAPER BALLOTS ARE SUUOOO AWEZOME CUZ WE CAN RECOUNT THEM! OMG!

Electronic voting is the only accurate and non-ridiculous way to vote in the 21st century.

Oh yes, I just love having hackers being able to alter the election.

I'm quite thankful that electronic voting is 100% illegal in Minnesota.

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

Keep in mind the counts don't include the challenged ballots, and Coleman has more challenges. Word on the street is also that his people are making rather frivolous ones as well when voter intent is obvious, such as the check mark one or the infamous one in my sig.

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

My precinct is in.

Coleman 321 (-2)
Franken 2171 (-1)

Nothing interesting.

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

Eh I don't really get why Coleman is supposed to be so evil, and thus don't care if he wins. Really couldn't care if Franken doesn't become a senator. Seriously he doesn't seem like a senator. I could buy him as a representative, I could also see him as governor, but not senator.

Coleman is a complete turncoat.  he's a former weed dealer who is now opposed to medical marijuana.  consider that, which is just a microcosm.

this gem also pisses me off:

''To be very blunt and God watch over Paul's soul, I am a 99 percent improvement over Paul Wellstone. Just about on every issue.''

^^^^^^^^^^

He's a party-switcher squatting in Paul Wellstone's seat. That's why everyone hates him.

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

Franken is a standard liberal Democrat. I see no reason for any Democrat to hate him.

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

I'm good enough, I'm smart enough, and doggone it, people like me!

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

LOL@this one. I voted Coleman in the poll, though obviously if I were a real judge I would throw it out. But I love the logic: http://senaterecount.startribune.com/media/ballotPDFs/rice_Nfld_W2_P2_challengedballot1.pdf

BTW check this one for a laugh: http://senaterecount.startribune.com/media/ballotPDFs/Olmsted_Kalmar_challenged%20ballot%202.pdf

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

BTW check this one for a laugh: http://senaterecount.startribune.com/media/ballotPDFs/Olmsted_Kalmar_challenged%20ballot%202.pdf

I think that's a pretty clear Franken vote upon looking at the rest of the ballot

Agreed but the challenges are still amusing.

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

OMG that ballot is even more awesome: http://senaterecount.startribune.com/media/ballotPDFs/beltrami_W2_challengedballot1.pdf

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

What the fuck is the logic behind this challenge?

http://senaterecount.startribune.com/media/ballotPDFs/mahnomen_LakeGrove_challengedballot1.pdf

"Inconsistency"? I'd like to give that challenger a black eye.

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

Does anyone else take issue with determining voter intent based upon who they voted for in other races? Sure if someone voted for Democrats in every other race there's probably a good chance they voted for Franken, but is "They voted for these people, so they must have voted for this person" really a fair and accurate judgment call? It just seems like quite a jump for us to make.

I could maybe see the logic in using it as one of many factors, but even then I'd have some serious concerns...

Coleman's people are the only ones using that logic. I've seen some of those votes for McCain with the Senate race blank with the reason being "Voter Intent - Rep".

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

Here's another one: http://senaterecount.startribune.com/media/ballotPDFs/fillmore_York_challengedballot1.pdf

An obvious McCain/Franken vote is listed as "Voter Intent Rep"

In all fairness these are all in Fillmore county so it was probably just one idiot there and they'll all be called for Franken no doubt.

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

http://senaterecount.startribune.com/media/ballotPDFs/LacQuiParle_DawsonW1_Challengedballot1.pdf

How does this show voter intent was not for Franken?

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

Voting for McCain/Franken does indeed seem odd, but it's not impossible for me to imagine any such scenarios (PUMA types are the most obvious.) More logical than Obama/Bachmann anyway. Of course Coleman's people know these challenges have no chance whatsoever of being upheld, they're just trying to prop up Coleman's lead.

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

The voter intent on this ballot is not clear? I suppose if you're a big enough idiot to support Norm Coleman you could think that: http://senaterecount.startribune.com/media/ballotPDFs/fillmore_PrestonTwp_challengedballot1.pdf

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

Supposedly this is not an overvote. It's for Coleman: http://senaterecount.startribune.com/media/ballotPDFs/chippewa_claracity_challengedballot1.pdf

Can we all agree that many Coleman challengers are complete fucking morons?

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

Can we all agree that many Coleman challengers are complete fucking morons?

Only if we can all agree that Franken challengers are complete fucking morons.

Coleman's people are not morons, in any case.  They're engaged in a petty case of tit-for-tat frivolous challenges with Team Franken.  Part of it is petty revenge, part of it is PR: Coleman doesn't want Franken to dramatically outpace them on challenges, or the running tally (which doesn't include challenged ballots) will start showing a Franken lead.

But none of Franken's people are ridiculous as the Coleman people in Fillmore county who basically believe that all votes for McCain must also be for Coleman. As someone else pointed out if you're going to use that logic then you better just declare Franken the winner as Obama won Minnesota.

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

OK I completed it. I got:

Coleman 240
Franken 261
Other/no vote 99

It adds up to 600 because of some screwy way it works. People on 538 have reported the same thing.

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

Remember his case with the ballots wasn't really rejected, the Commission just ruled it wasn't in that jurisdiction. He just needs to take it to an actual court.

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

Probably someone pissed about a ruling the judge made.

This brought up an interesting question: Does it count as identifying the ballot if someone writes themselves in for all the minor offices? (As many have done. Almost all Coleman supporters interestingly.)