Al Franken wants a recount. And that's okay.
With 100% of the votes counted, incumbent Senator Norm Coleman defeated Franken by a mere 601 votes in the Minnesota Senate race. A recount may be requested in Minnesota if the margin of victory is less than one half of one percent. With approximately 2.9 million voters participating in the Minnesota election, Coleman's margin of victory fell well below that threshold.
“Let me be clear: Our goal is to ensure that every vote is properly counted,” the author and comedian was was quoted saying in the Star-Tribune. He cited alleged voting irregularities at some Minneapolis polling places that could have significantly affected the final outcome of the Senate race.
A recount could delay the determination of a final winner for the Senate seat until December and would be reminiscent of the 2000 Florida recount that involved George W. Bush, Al Gore, and thousands of hanging chads that left the electorate hanging in the balance for several weeks.
At the time, Franken joked that the advice he'd offer then-Vice President Al Gore would be to say "I'm good enough, I'm smart enough, and doggone it, 48 percent of the people like me!"
