Former Minn. Viking to make major decisions in Franken/Coleman race
By Emily Kaiser in Franken vs. Coleman
Thursday, Jan. 8 2009 @ 12:25PM
As Minnesota prepares for the next stage of the race for our open U.S. Senate seat, former Minnesota Viking Alan Page will make some major decisions that will determine the winner. Al Franken is currently ahead of Norm Coleman by 225 votes according to the state Canvassing Board's final vote tally.
Page, now Minnesota Supreme Court Justice, will appoint the three-judge panel that will head the case, according to the Star Tribune.
Under state law, the panel should be chosen by the chief justice of the Minnesota Supreme Court, but Chief Justice Eric Magnuson served on the Canvassing Board that ran the recount. He chose to recuse himself, passing the decisions along to Page.
Do the campaigns have anything to be worried about?
Supreme Court judges aren't supposed to have political leanings, but Page is thought to be a Democrat, the Pioneer Press says.
During the recount, Page wrote many of the Supreme Court decisions. He was one of two justices that dissented on the opinion that the campaigns should jointly agree on wrongly rejected absentee ballots and have veto power.
More from the PiPress:
Page could pick the three judges, who could come from any level of the judiciary, himself; he could defer all or part of the picks to the campaigns; or he could find some other way to settle the question.
The makeup of the panel, which by law will meet in Ramsey County court, will influence not only the decisions that are made but also the public perception of the election trial.
Both Franken's and Coleman's campaigns said they respect the decision.
"We have every reason to believe Justice Page will appoint a three-judge panel that will carry out its duties in a fair and impartial manner," said Mark Drake, spokesman for the Coleman campaign.Can the former Purple People Eater pull this off? And how does Minnesota end up with so many celebrity-types running such important offices?
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