Franken-Coleman Race Goes to Recount

WASHINGTON (JTA) -- The 111th U.S. Congress is slated to have 13 Jewish senators and 32 members of the House of Representatives. But one of the most hotly contested Senate races, pitting two Jewish candidates against each other in Minnesota, may not be decided for weeks.

Republican incumbent Norm Coleman led Democratic challenger Al Franken by fewer than 700 votes in the Senate race in Minnesota. The slim margin of less than one-half of 1 percent triggered an automatic recount in the race, in which independent Dean Barkley received 15 percent of the vote.

The recount comes after the two candidates spent more than $30 million, mostly attacking each other. Coleman used Franken's background as a writer and performer for "Saturday Night Live" against him by highlighting jokes that were insensitive to women, while Franken charged that his GOP opponent was too close to big-money "special interests."

Some had speculated that the Franken-Coleman race could be the key in determining whether Democrats would acquire a 60-member, filibuster-proof majority in the Senate. But with Democrats holding a 56-40 advantage in the Senate and Republicans ahead in three other Senate races not yet official, that does not look to be the case.

In the only other Senate race matching two Jewish candidates, Democrat Frank Lautenberg of New Jersey won his fifth term, defeating the former Republican congressman, Dick Zimmer.