Coleman vs. Franken: Wake Us When It's Over

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It's official, folks. The U.S. Senate race between Republican Norm Coleman and Democrat Al Franken has become the longest-running election in Minnesota history, surpassing the 1962 governor's race between Karl Rolvaag and Elmer L. Anderson, which ended with Rolvaag's victory by recount in 1963.

Leaves and snow have come and gone since Coleman claimed victory with less than one percent of the vote, triggering an automatic recount. That went through the holidays, with Franken taking a 225-vote lead. Then we had the trial to determine which votes were legitimate and which weren't. Now it is all up to a three-judge panel.

Even then it may not be all over. Coleman and his attorneys have been making noises about filing an appeal before the Minnesota Supreme Court should they lose, because they believe that is their best chance of winning re-election.

Neither Franken nor Coleman have been certified by Governor Tim Pawlenty and Secretary of State Mark Ritchie to be seated by the Senate, preferring to wait until there's a verdict, as required by Minnesota law. What are the odds that Pawlenty is just holding out until his fellow Republican wins?

No matter what happens, Coleman and Franken are now considered damaged goods politically. If Coleman appeals--and loses--as expected, he might hurt his chances of succeeding Pawlenty in the governor's chair should he decide to run for Presdent in 2012. Then again, does Coleman really want to risk more ridicule after (A) losing the 1998 Governor's race to a former pro wrestler, (B) winning his Senate seat in 2002 only after his Democratic opponent was killed in a plane crash a week before the election, and (C) potentially losing re-election to someone who had once been on Saturday Night Live?

As for Franken, he wasn't the Democrats' first choice to challenge Coleman until he (A) moved from New York to Minnesota, and (B) built up this enormous war chest funded by his celebrity pals. If the verdict goes against Franken, would he ask for his old job back on Air America radio? Or go back to writing books explaining why Rush Limbaugh is a big fat idiot?

Minnesota currently has one Senator, Amy Klobuchar, trying to do the work of two while this legal battle plays out. Meanwhile, Congress has been passing bills expediting President Barack Obama's agenda to fix the mess the previous President left him with. This tit-for-tat needs to be settled soon, but the damage to Minnesota's reputation may be too much to overcome.