A former member of the Federal Election Commission (FEC) says it would be a "grave error" for the U.S. Senate to intervene in the Minnesota recount involving Republican Senator Norm Coleman and Democratic challenger Al Franken.
Al Franken's campaign has suggested it might seek the aid of the Democratic-controlled Senate or the courts to get up to 1,000 discarded absentee ballots counted since the Minnesota Canvassing Board ruled that it did not have the authority to review the rejected ballots. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nevada) is quoted as saying the Canvassing Board's decision not to count the ballots is "a cause for great concern." Former FEC member Hans von Spakovsky, a legal scholar at The Heritage Foundation in Washington, DC, says the Senate has the constitutional power to review the qualifications of individuals coming in, but cautions that there is a limit on that power constitutionally that should not be abused. "Absent any facts that there was fraud in the election or there was misconduct by election officials, the Senate should certainly not intervene," he states. "The absentee ballots were apparently rejected under applicable Minnesota law -- and that is not an abuse of the process; that's not misconduct by election officials. That's election officials following state law -- and that is not a situation that the Senate should intervene in." Von Spakovsky says even though the state Canvassing Board may certify the election later this month, it is likely the losing candidate will file federal or state lawsuits contesting the election results.
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