The Minnesota State Supreme Court has rejected the Coleman campaign's bid to have hundreds of rejected absentee ballots included in the Senate recount, the Minneapolis Star reports. The decision clears the way for Al Franken to be certified the winner by the state canvassing board.

The Coleman campaign issued the following statement from attorney Fritz Knaak on the court decision:

“Given our campaign's unwavering commitment to ensuring that the vote of no Minnesotan is disenfranchised, today's ruling by the Minnesota Supreme Court is both disappointing and disheartening.  The fact that the Franken campaign now rejects the notion of every valid vote being counted so they can attempt to declare victory on the basis of a broken process, and an artificial lead built on double counting of votes should concern all Minnesotans.  Today's ruling, which effectively disregards the votes of hundreds of Minnesotans, ensures that an election contest is now inevitable.  The Coleman campaign has consistently and continually fought to have every validly cast vote counted, and for the integrity of Minnesota's election system, we will not stop now.  The Minnesota Supreme Court has made sure that an election contest will need to be filed quickly in order to ensure that an accurate and valid recount can be achieved.”