Three Still Undecided U.S. Senate Races Could Make Crucial Difference

Franken vs. Coleman

In Minnesota, comedian Al Franken is trying for a serious new career by upsetting Republican Sen. Norm Coleman.

Georgia's Senate seat also remains unsettled because none of the three candidates received more than 50 percent of the vote. A runoff will be held Dec. 2 between Republican incumbent Saxby Chambliss and Democratic challenger Jim Martin.

The Democrats came out of Election Day with a hefty 57-40 edge in the Senate. If the Democrats pick up all three contested races, they would have the magic number of 60 votes needed to block any Republican filibusters.

"It's possible," said Miller. "But not likely."

In Minnesota, Franken is relying more on the decision of a judge to bolster his effort to catch up to Coleman. He trails Coleman by 206 votes out of 2.9 million cast.

Such a tight race automatically triggers a recount, but Franken is fighting for the right to review absentee ballots that were disqualified to make sure they were properly vetted.

In addition, there were 2.92 million estimated Minnesota voters on Election Day, but 2.88 million recorded Senate votes. Some voters may have intentionally skipped the race, but officials expect that the hand count will show the votes that the optical-scan machines didn't pick up.

With memories of Florida's chad nightmare still fresh, Minnesota Secretary of State Mark Ritchie, a Democrat, has created a recount review board that includes himself and four judges to settle any disputes about individual votes.

Ritchie has set a deadline for all the state's counties to complete their recounts by Dec. 5.

In the Georgia race, it's all starting from scratch. On the Republicans' National Senatorial Committee Web site, visitors are greeted with the notice, "URGENT. The Race Goes On. Donate Now."