Coleman goes to court in Senate recount

ST. PAUL, Minn., Dec. 15 (UPI) -- The campaign of Republican incumbent Norm Coleman implored the Minnesota Supreme Court Monday to intervene in the state's U.S. Senate election recount.

The Coleman camp, trying to fend off Democratic challenger Al Franken, who trails by fewer than 200 votes among nearly 3 million cast in the Nov. 4 election, asked the state's highest court to stay a decision by the state Board of Canvassers recommending the state's 87 counties open and count absentee ballots disqualified for no stated, legal reason, The Hill reported. The Coleman forces want the Supreme Court to provide uniform standards for counting the ballots, estimated at more than 1,000.

"The Supreme Court ought to direct the local officials to step back, take a breath and allow the court to set a uniform standard," Coleman campaign attorney Fritz Knaak said on a conference call, adding he expected the court to act soon.

Knaak also said the Coleman campaign wants the Supreme Court to take another look at ballots numbering in the "low hundreds" that were allegedly counted twice during the recount.

The Franken campaign was expected to respond later in the day.

Hundreds of other challenged ballots also are still at issue. Coleman has said he would have no more than 1,000 challenges and Franken promised to pare his total 500, the St. Paul Pioneer Press reported Monday. The campaigns together initially had lodged more than 6,000 challenges.

The state canvassing board is to convene Tuesday and has given itself until Friday to decide all challenges.

The board criticized both campaigns for the number of challenges made.