Today is an important recount deadline–the last day to withdraw ballot challenges. Tom Emmer and Mark Dayton had until noon today to withdraw any ballot challenges they had made during the course of the recount.The Canvassing Board now has a week to certify the results and review any ballot challenges that remain.

Emmer has removed 650 challenges today, leaving about 131 remaining.

Despite the fact that Emmer removed many of the ballots his volunteers challenged, he said he’s not going away. CNN might have called the race for Dayton, but that doesn’t mean Emmer won’t contest the recount results. Emmer and Republican Party chair Tony Sutton seem to have had different opinions on the likelihood of a recount challenge in the past, but it seems as if Emmer is backing away from his pledge not to challenge the results if they remain largely unchanged from election night (which is the case).

More than two-thirds of Minnesota voters think Mark Dayton rightfully won the 2010 gubernatorial election, and two-thirds of Minnesotans want Tom Emmer to concede.

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