Senate races

National Republican Senatorial Committee Chairman John Cornyn (Texas) has e-mailed supporters and asked them to donate to Joe Miller's legal fund.

Miller, the Republican nominee for Alaska's Senate race, is awaiting the final results of the contest. Miller beat Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R) in the GOP primary, and she waged a write-in bid.

Cornyn writes of Miller: "He faces the potential of a lengthy recount. And in Alaska, they are still counting votes from election day. We need to get Joe the resources he needs to win the vote count. Because we need Joe to join our fight against Barack Obama."

Exit polls showed the "write-in" candidate winning, but it's unknown how many of those votes were for Murkoswki or for one of the other write-in candidates.

As of Thursday, initial returns showed write-in ballots held a 13,439-vote edge over Miller, according to the Anchorage Daily News, but, again, it's not clear how many of those are for Murkowski — or how many have been cast properly.

There are expected to be legal challenges, particularly regarding voter intent, if a write-in ballot appears to be improperly cast.

Just a day after winning reelection to the governor's office, Nebraska Gov. Dave Heineman (R) already ruled out a run against Sen. Ben Nelson (D-Neb.) in 2012 should the Democrat decide to seek a third term. 

The conservative Democrat is likely to be a top Republican target in two years in a cycle where the GOP thinks it will be poised to retake the Senate majority. But the man many GOP strategists were hoping would take him on has already decided against it.

"The Senate's not my cup of tea," Heineman said in a news conference Thursday.  "I have the best job in America. Why would I give that up?"

The timing of Heineman's announcement is somewhat of a surprise, as some strategists had pegged him as the most likely candidate to take on Nelson two years from now. 

Nebraska's state Treasurer is already urging Heineman to reconsider his decision not to run, according to the Omaha World Herald. 

Meanwhile, another Republican is already taking advantage of Heineman's announcement. State Attorney General Jon Bruning has called a Friday news conference and is expected to announce a bid for the seat.  

Nelson's yes vote on healthcare reform provided Democrats the 60th vote they needed last year to ensure its passage in the Senate, making Nelson a top GOP target next cycle in the conservative leaning state. 

Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.) defeated Republican Dino Rossi, according to the Seattle Times, which called the race Thursday evening.

Sen. Jim DeMint's PAC is exploring ways it can help Joe Miller in Alaska's ballot-counting process.

Don't expect a quick verdict in Washington state's Senate contest between incumbent Patty Murray (D-Wash.) and Republican Dino Rossi.   

Murray has padded her vote lead over Rossi — she now leads by some 27,000 votes, according to unofficial numbers from the state board of elections. So far, more than 1.6 million ballots have been counted.   

Democrats see positive signs in the numbers for Murray, pointing to her commanding margin over Rossi in King County. Some 171,000 ballots are still uncounted in that Democrat-heavy county. 

Still, close to 600,000 ballots have yet to be counted statewide with elections officials continuing the count throughout the day Thursday. 

It's a typically slow process in Washington given the state's system of mail in balloting. The vast majority of voters cast their ballots via mail and as long as the ballot is postmarked by midnight on Election Day, it counts. In addition, some counties in the state are without ballot sorting machines, forcing a manual count of votes.  

On top of the nearly 600,000 ballots still uncounted, thousands more are likely on their way, according to the state board of elections. There's also a total of 55,000 overseas and military ballots that have until November 22 to reach elections officials.    

Given the current count University of Washington Political Science Professor Matt Barreto is forecasting a sizable win for Murray when all is said and done. Based on the counties where ballots are still outstanding, he predicts the incumbent will only continue to increase her lead as the votes are counted, making a Rossi comeback unlikely.  

For an automatic recount, Rossi would have to whittle Murray's margin down to less than 2,000 votes.

LAS VEGAS -- Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said he had a “very pleasant, nice conversation” with Republican Sharron Angle when she called him to concede Tuesday night.

“I appreciated it,” Reid said at a press conference at the Vdara Hotel. "I conveyed to her that even though we didn’t know each other very well, that I have great respect for her.”

Reid noted Angle’s “family situation” was on display during the campaign. “Her husband’s always with her. He’s been very supportive of her,” he said.

Reid has a famously close bond with his wife, Landra, who joined him onstage at his election-night party at the Aria.

Reid defeated Angle by five points Tuesday despite trailing in most public polls. The Democrat noted the discrepancy with a hint of satisfaction and chided reporters for writing about the surveys. 

“We’ve got to do something about these misstated polls,” he said. “They’re so unfair, and you just gobble them up … [like they’re the] finest piece of pastry in the world.

“They’re false, and they’re misleading, and people pay for those polls so you’ll use them,” he said. “Every poll showed me losing. And I was comfortable where I was because I knew those polls were a slanted poll from where we were.”

LAS VEGAS — Reid says McConnell comment about making Obama one-term president is wrong message.

The National Republican Senatorial Committee is pledging to stand behind Republican Joe Miller, who has yet to concede to write-in candidate Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska).

"The NRSC has been assisting the Miller campaign from day one and we continue to assist his campaign,” spokesman Brian Walsh said in an e-mail. “There are still thousands of ballots left to be counted in the days ahead, and it will be at least two weeks before the write-in ballots will be reviewed, so like everyone else we will continue to closely monitor this race as it unfolds."

Sen. Michael Bennet (D) has been declared the winner of Colorado’s Senate race by the Associated Press.