Coleman Campaign Asks MN Supreme Court For Temporary Restraining Order To Stop Counting

Don't touch those improperly rejected absentee ballots!  That's what the Norm Coleman campaign wants Minnesota's Supreme Court to tell all of Minnesota's 87 counties.  The Coleman campaign has asked the court for a Temporary Restraining Order or a Temporary Injunction to stop counties from opening and counting absentee ballots that were improperly rejected.   The campaign argues that doing so "will result in voter disenfranchisement, dissolution, and disparate treatment" which it says are equal protection violations under the US Supreme Court's Bush v. Gore ruling of 2000.

Meanwhile the Franken campaign has filed a "motion to intervene" with the court, which essentially says the campaign is an interested party in the suit and asks to be kept in the loop on any developments in the case.

The Franken campaign says it has cut its challenged ballot numbers to 436.  According to Franken Communications Director Andy Barr the two campaigns met at the Secretary of State's office today to discuss tomorrow's canvassing board meeting.  The Franken campaign produced a list of 436 ballots that it will continue to challenge.  Barr said the Coleman campaign had no such list.

Last week several judges on the Canvassing Board indicated that they did not want to consider challenges that were frivolous.   Minnesota Secretary of State Mark Ritchie has said he thinks the most challenges the board could consider in the four days it has to review ballots would be 1,000.

Full text of the filing can be found here.