historic

Minnesota’s recount of its most expensive race ever restarts this morning with only 10 percent of the Nov. 4 ballots left to review, a combined challenged-ballot pile just 260 shy of 5,000, and the gap in the U.S. Senate race standing at 292 votes (advantage: incumbent). But looking past the contest’s record cost, its microscopic margin and the arduous recount process, the Smart Politics blog asserts that if Norm Coleman retains his seat, it will be the first time in Minnesota history that a Republican wins a race for U.S. Senate at the same time (give or take a month or more) that the state goes double digits for a Democrat presidential candidate.