Franken recount early reports

[wellstone dem]

Subject: early report from one county Franken +2, Coleman-6
Message:
http://www.startribune.com/politics/national/senate/347...

"According to early recount results today from Ramsey County, Franken netted four votes. Franken picked up two votes and Coleman lost six, according to the first dozen precincts out of 104 to be recounted in St. Paul. County elections manager Joe Mansky wrote the new raw numbers with a marker on the board next to totals from Election Day.

Mansky said there were about a dozen challenged ballots. "I guarantee I will win all those challenges 100 percent when they get to the State Canvassing Board," he said."

The article says netted 4, but I think that it is really netted 8.

Here's another link for results, though I don't think it is updated often.

http://www.startribune.com/politics/national/senate /

Also, my sister said in Stearns County, after two precincts it was -1 for Coleman, but then they took the link for a website that was broadcasting the count down.

[onehandle]

1. Ugh. I'm not going to be able to stand several weeks of this. nt

[riqster]

2. Check no more than once a day

Seriously, if these people do their jobs correctly, the recount will go at the pace of a reasonably spry snail.

[GodlessBiker]

3. How can Coleman lose 6 votes without Al picking them up?

[onehandle]

5. If it cannot be determined who they voted for, the ballot can be tossed. nt

[GodlessBiker]

7. Makes sense. Thanks.

[riqster]

8. And should be. nt

[riqster]

6. If it doesn't have his name on it, it's not his.

Franken got two more votes that had his name clearly selected. Coleslaw lost six, where HIS name was NOT clearly selected.

[aquart]

12. How did he get them in the first place?

[riqster]

4. Excellent comment accompanying the article:

"Featured comment

Facts are facts and rules are rules
You Coleman supporters can whine all you want about the recount, but facts are facts and rules are rules. The fact is, machines can and … read more often do make mistakes. Sometimes the optical scanners are dirty, not programmed correctly, or not calibrated correctly and either don't pick up all the votes or assign votes where there were none. Objective studies have shown a machine error rate for optical scanners of somewhere in the neighborhood of 0.5%, though the Secretary of State's office says it's a little lower, around 0.2%. Either way, that could add up to thousands of votes that were not properly counted. We don't know which way those votes will fall, but the one thing we can be certain of is that the final count will be different than the original machine count---and the hand recount, with numerous observers watching like hawks, will be more accurate than the original machine count.

As for the rules, you may not like the state law, but Minnesota law is perfectly clear: in a hand recount, every ballot with a "clear indication of voter intent" MUST be counted, and that includes votes clearly indicated by a partially filled oval, an X or check mark, or circling the candidate's name. Yes, the voter failed to follow instructions, but the law says that vote MUST be counted so long as the voter's intention is clear. It's not optional, and it's not subjective. The candidate's representatives can contest such a ballot if they disagree with the determination of the election officials, and that ballot will be adjudicated by the state canvassing board.

You may not like the rules, but the rules are the rules. These rules have applied to every recount in Minnesota for many, many years. Your whining now won't change it. Live with it."

This person really understands what elections are all about - the voters.

[Winterblues]

9. Isn't there some way the Extreme court can step in and stop the vote counting?

There is precident afterall..:shrug:

[9119495]

10. Obama could pull an Andrew Jackson then...

"The Supreme Court has ruled, now let them try to enforce their decision."

The executive branch enforces court rulings...or chooses not to.

[Fresh_Start]

11. looks like both sides are contesting votes with

Franken losing more votes overall.

http://ww2.startribune.com/news/metro/elections/returns/2008/recount/msenco.html

[riqster]

13. Franken is closing the gap

"By day's end, with about 18 percent of the vote recounted, Coleman continued to lead Franken -- but by only 174 votes, notably narrower than the unofficial gap of 215 votes at which the recount had begun. Franken's gain owed much to a swing of 23 votes in the Democratic stronghold of St. Louis County -- the result of faintly marked ballots and older optical scanners that failed to read the marks."