Ciresi exits Minnesota's U.S. Senate race

ST. PAUL, Minn., March 11 (UPI) -- Lawyer Mike Ciresi has quit the U.S. Senate race in Minnesota, having failed to overtake comedian Al Franken in the fight for the Democratic nomination.

Ciresi, who once won a major settlement from the tobacco industry, made the announcement Monday weeks after he gave his campaign $2 million, the St. Paul (Minn.) Pioneer Press reported.

"Continuing the endorsement race would only lead to an unnecessary floor fight," the Mendota Heights lawyer said in a statement. "It is time to step aside."

Franken is now going head-to-head with University of St. Thomas professor Jack Nelson-Pallmeyer for the Democratic nomination. The winner will challenge Republican U.S. Sen. Norm Coleman in the general election in November.

Ciresi gained statewide prominence when he represented the state in the case against tobacco companies in 1998 won a $6.1 billion settlement.

The lawsuit, which brought $440 million to Ciresi's Minneapolis firm, gained the release of 33 million pages of industry documents and pledges from the companies to restrict their marketing practices.