I’m going to assume that Tim Hibbits knows what he is talking about in his electorate modelling showing that Merkley will edge out Smith, and Hibbits is holding to that prediction.   It’s all about a mass of Multnomah County votes versus a smattering of votes from the hinterlands of rural Oregon being what is left.  Which leaves us with three Senate races that look like they’re going into overtime.: 

#1:  Georgia.  Saxby Chambliss, Republican Incumbent and Reprensible Entity, versus Jim Martin, Democrat.  Last night, at sometime around 11:30 maybe, I moused over an interactive New York Times electoral map and tried to souse out what counties were not yet counted at sufficient strength such that the 50.2 percent Chambliss lead with 99.7 percent of precints reporting could tip down below 50 percent and forge into a run-off.  The check-mark was not there, after all.  Apparently it was all immaterial, the real bunch of votes not counted was a batch of early voters — in Chambliss’s language, “the sight of their voters will bring out our voters” — or, the sight of long lines of black voters.  I look over and the count has tipped down below 50 points — where it sits in perma-frost.  And so there’s a contest on December 2.

#2:  Minnesota.  Like all election results of this type, where the margin at the end of election day is .03 percent and far less than the .5 percent that pushes a recount, the candidate ahead declares victory and insinuates that the other guy is trying to steal the election.  The candidate behind scours around and points to any and all electoral irregularities.  Apparently the recount will run through December.  Let it do so, and ignore Norm Coleman’s protestations to expedite this process — and avoid any grandstands of presumptuousness.
Actually, if you’ve ever heard Al Franken’s protestations of the 2000 Florida Debacle — on his repetitive and tediously dull radio program, remember that smuggly held chant “What Do We Want?”  “PATIENCE!” “When do we want it?”  “NOW!”

#3:  Alaska.  It looks like the good voters of Alaska have just re-elected the 7 felon Ted Stevens.  This becomes hilarious, as Harry Reid has already announced that if elected, the Senate will immidately vote to expel him.  Further, the entire Republican Party leadership — the just re-elected Mitch McConnell as well as John McCain and Sarah Palin (who, I will note, was running against Stevens), and everyone else of note — have stated that Stevens should resign.  This leaves him with the Hawaii contingent of Senators backing him up — Inouye and Akaka — and maybe his fellow Alaska Senator, whatsherguts, in that strange Alaska — Hawaii alliance where the two states back each other up in the their Corrupt Train Express. 

Once we get past this expulsion, Alaska law propels a new match-up.  The logical and seemingly only Democrat is the Democrat who just lost, Anchorage Mayor Mark Begich.  The Republican?  After an interim Senator — which I think Alaska law wouldn’t have running for re-election based on the case of nepotism which brought us Alaska’s current Junior Senator — how about goddamned Sarah Palin?

For what it’s worth, if the Democrats win all three of these seats, this would have to wait into the next Senate term as Alaska holds a re-election, they would be at that mythical magical 60 Seat Filibuster — though, at this point, that’s basically a moot point and always has been.   But it is difficult to picture a state that elected a convicted felon over a Democrat going for a Democrat over a non-convicted felon Republican, so maybe we can just push this aside anyways.  Or maybe I’m ignoring the rules of federal expenditures in assessing the worth of Ted Stevens?

Meanwhile, Illinois’s corrupt and unpopular Democratic governor picks Obama’s replacement, and Delaware’s Democratic governor picks Biden’s interim replacement to the next election — apparently Beau Biden is the open secret for Delaware Senator.  It’s a family affair.

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