Minnesota Independent

Emmer team: Frivolous challenges could reach 8,700

By Andy Birkey | 12.03.10 | 8:01 am

By Thursday evening, 93 percent of ballots had been counted in the Minnesota gubernatorial recount, but the State Canvassing Board will meet on Friday to deal with thousands of frivolous ballot challenges made by the team of Republican Tom Emmer, whose lawyer said the number could reach 8,700 by 2 pm today. Dayton’s team withdrew all its frivolous challenges and in a letter to the canvassing board chastised Emmer.

Mark Dayton leads Tom Emmer by around 9,000 votes

By Andy Birkey | 12.02.10 | 8:30 am

With DFLer Mark Dayton’s lead in the gubernatorial race hovering around 9,000 votes, Republican Tom Emmer’s campaign has increased its ballot challenges: Emmer’s 2,141 frivolous challenges, which dwarf Dayton’s 39, are now focused on Hennepin County, where election manager Rachel Smith is seeking to change counting procedures that have been slowed by the volume of Emmer’s challenges. The state GOP accused her of taking Dayton’s side in the recount.

Emmer files frivolous challenges in Hennepin County while GOP hints at election lawsuit

By Andy Birkey | 12.01.10 | 9:07 am

The second day of the Minnesota gubernatorial recount focused on two counties, Hennepin and Ramsey, where the bulk of ballots remaining to be counted exist. Hennepin County officials told reporters Tuesday that the campaign of Republican Tom Emmer was engaged in numerous frivolous challenges to ballots. Meanwhile, party chair Tony Sutton says that the Republican Party may press for a court challenge once the recount has concluded.

Emmer wants recount rules changed

By Andy Birkey | 11.19.10 | 2:00 pm

The Republican Party of Minnesota and Tom Emmer for Governor want changes made to the recount rules ahead of the State Canvassing Board meeting on Tuesday. Specifically, Emmer wants Rule 8 changed to make inspection of challenged ballots the job of the five-member canvassing board and not the 87 county auditors.

Emmer files petition with Supreme Court, Dayton camp calls it delay tactic

By Andy Birkey | 11.18.10 | 10:00 am

The Republican Party of Minnesota and Tom Emmer’s gubernatorial campaign filed a petition Wednesday with the Minnesota Supreme Court alleging that more people voted in the 2010 election than registered. The GOP claims it has information from election judges who “did not witness” other election judges counting precinct sign in sheets and that “tens of thousands”of “phantom votes” exist. The recount team of Mark Dayton said that votes have been reconciled twice in post-election reporting, and that the GOP is engaged in an eleventh-hour “hail mary” to postpone the recount process.

Leading up to recount, GOP files suit against two counties

By Andy Birkey | 11.15.10 | 9:30 am

The Republican Party of Minnesota and Tom Emmer for Governor filed a civil suit against Pine and St. Louis counties on Friday afternoon saying the two have been too slow in getting requested documents related to the election.

GOP taking ‘aggressive approach’ to Dayton-Emmer recount

By Andy Birkey | 11.09.10 | 12:57 pm

The Republican Party of Minnesota is promising an “aggressive approach” to the recount between Republican Tom Emmer and DFLer Mark Dayton in the race for governor. On Tuesday, the GOP announced it has hired former Minnesota Supreme Court Chief Justice Eric Magnuson for the recount process. Magnuson sat on the State Canvassing Board during the Franken-Coleman recount. The local party is also collecting information from GOP activists on “irregularities,” while at least one national Republican has started a misinformation campaign directed at Secretary of State Mark Ritchie.

Former Gov. Arne Carlson and Tom Horner in late September. Photo: Facebook

Veterans respond to GOP chair’s comment about ‘quisling’ Horner supporters

By Paul Schmelzer | 10.07.10 | 2:59 pm

Independence Party gubernatorial candidate Tom Horner has been picking off endorsements from former Republican legislators, from past Gov. Arne Carlson and former U.S. Sen. Dave Durenberger to a slate of 13 former statehouse legislators who yesterday announced their support for his candidacy. That announcement drew the ire of state GOP Chair Tony Sutton, who responded by stating, “There’s a special place in hell for these quislings.” Two of those former legislators — veterans of the Korean War and World War II — responded to Sutton today in a letter, writing that they found it “demeaning” that their choice to support Horner drew comparisons to Nazi sympathizer and traitor Vidkun Quisling.

Dayton out with two new television ads

By Andy Birkey | 09.29.10 | 2:55 pm

Mark Dayton, the DFL candidate for governor, released two new television ads on Wednesday. The first, titled “Dayton’s Values,” touts his family’s business, while the second, “Middle Class,” outlines some of the former senator’s key talking points on the middle class and job creation.

Dayton proposes standards for political trackers

By Andy Birkey | 08.17.10 | 7:45 am

DFL gubernatorial candidate Mark Dayton told reporters on Monday that his campaign would not employ the use of political trackers and requested standards for his opponents’ trackers following an incident at the Game Fair over the weekend. Dayton says GOP…