ANOTHER MINNESOTA STANDOFF - AT 7:08 A.M. ET:  From The New York Times: 

A mere 65 votes separated the two candidates late Tuesday in a Congressional contest in upstate New York that received national attention and was widely seen as a referendum on the Obama administration’s economic recovery efforts.

With all precincts reporting, the Democrat, Scott Murphy, a 39-year-old venture capitalist, led 77,344 to 77,279 over his Republican rival, Assemblyman James N. Tedisco, 58, for the seat vacated by Senator Kirsten E. Gillibrand, a Democrat. The turnout was surprisingly strong for a special election.

But 10,055 absentee ballots were issued — and 5,907 received so far, state election officials said — meaning the election cannot be decided until the paper ballots are counted.

COMMENT:  We said before that the importance of this election was greatly exaggerated.  Now it's essentially a tie.  When the final result is announced it will be an astirisk to history.

April 1, 2009