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Democrat Al Franken is seeking a "forensic search" by Minnesota election officials for 133 ballots missing in a Minneapolis precinct presumed to favor the Democrat in the undecided Senate race. The Franken campaign demanded the special investigation while maintaining it has a 10-vote lead in the recount over incumbent Sen. Norm Coleman (R). "We are calling upon the Secretary of State, Hennepin County, and the City of Minneapolis to complete an intensive search," said Franken attorney Marc Elias in a conference call, addressing reports that 133 votes have gone missing in a Minneapolis's Third Ward. Elias said every person who touched or transported the ballots should be interviewed, and any polling place, vehicles, or warehouses that have held the ballots should be searched. The ballots are said to favor Franken by 46 votes. "The outcome of this election may be at stake," Elias said. "The integrity of the Minnesota electoral process is also at stake." Coleman’s lead recount lawyer said there’s a “plausible explanation from Minneapolis election officials as to what occurred.” “The issue in Ramsey County is pretty serious, but it may end up not mattering,” Attorney Fritz Knaak said. Elias said that their internal tally assumes all challenged ballots will be overturned by the state's Board of Canvassers and shows Franken leading Coleman by 10 votes. "We expect that we will not see any significant movement in the margin between now and the end of the hand recount," he said. According to the Minneapolis Star-Tribune's tally, Coleman leads Franken by 316 votes in the state's contested recount, with 98 percent of votes having been recounted. The campaigns have together lodged a total of 6,326 challenges to ballots. Coleman's campaign announced it would withdraw 650 challenges today, while Franken withdrew 633 challenges yesterday.
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