The Minnesota Supreme Court just denied a petition from Minnesota GOP gubernatorial candidate Tom Emmer to delay the recount by forcing counties to use an alternate method of reconciling votes cast with registered voters. Dayton, the Democrat, continues to hold a lead of nearly 9,000 votes and that number is unlikely to change significantly after the recount is complete. This decision (which the court delivered less than two hours after hearing oral arguments) should signal to Team Emmer that little can be gained by continued litigation. Minnesotans don’t have much patience for displays of naked political gamesmanship and I’m not sure Emmer will have the funds necessary to keep fighting. The odds are now slightly better that Dayton will take office as scheduled on January 3rd and Pawlenty will be free to get on with his next job as an also-ran presidential candidate.
