April 14 (Bloomberg) -- Democrat Al Franken is the winner of the disputed U.S. Senate race in Minnesota, a three-judge court said in a ruling yesterday that Republican Norm Coleman intends to appeal to the state’s Supreme Court.

The ruling in the dispute over the Nov. 4 election was announced by the panel in St. Paul. Democrats, including Franken, urged Coleman to abandon his legal challenge, which could last months and go to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Under Minnesota law, the seat will remain vacant until the legal challenge to the election’s result is resolved. After an initial recount, Franken had a 255-vote lead over Coleman, the incumbent. That margin grew to 312 votes on April 7 when the court counted additional absentee ballots.

“I would call on Senator Coleman to allow me to get to work for the people of Minnesota,” Franken said at a news conference last night outside his home in Minneapolis.

Ben Ginsberg, the spokesman for Coleman’s legal team, said the Republican would follow through with an appeal to Minnesota’s Supreme Court. “This order ignores the reality of what happened in the counties and cities on Election Day in terms of counting votes,” Ginsberg said in an e-mailed statement.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, a Nevada Democrat, issued a statement acknowledging Coleman’s right to appeal the ruling. He also called on Minnesota’s Governor Tim Pawlenty, a Republican, to sign Franken’s election certificate if the state Supreme Court rejects Coleman’s challenge.

‘Waited Long Enough’

“Minnesotans have waited long enough to be represented by the two U.S. senators they deserve,” Reid said in an e-mailed statement.

Virginia Governor Tim Kaine, who is also the chairman of the Democratic National Committee, called for Coleman to immediately drop his legal challenge. “Enough is enough,” Kaine said in an e-mailed statement. “It is time for Norm Coleman to concede and for Al Franken to be sworn in as the next U.S. senator from Minnesota.”

U.S. Senator John Cornyn of Texas, who is chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, wrote in a fundraising letter today the panel’s order is a “misguided ruling that disenfranchises over 4,000 Minnesota voters.”

Cornyn, who leads the Republican effort to win more Senate seats, said the party stands behind Coleman’s decision to appeal the ruling.

‘Fair and Square’

Marc Elias, who heads Franken’s legal team, said today he is confident the state Supreme Court will uphold the panel’s decision. “Al Franken won this election fair and square,” Elias said on a conference call with reporters.

Pending the resolution of the dispute, Democrat Amy Klobuchar remains Minnesota’s only U.S. senator.

The Coleman campaign has 10 days to file its appeal.

Minnesota District Court Judges Elizabeth Hayden, Kurt Marben and Denise Reilly declared that Franken “received the highest number of votes legally cast” in November’s election “and is therefore entitled to receive the certificate of election.”

“The overwhelming weight of evidence indicates that the November 4, 2008, election was conducted fairly, impartially and accurately,” the court ruled. “There is no evidence of systemic disenfranchisement in the state’s election system, including in its absentee-balloting procedures.”

One Short of 60

Democrats control the U.S. Senate 58-41, and a win by Franken would put the party one vote short of the 60 needed to overcome filibusters that can stall legislation.

Franken, 57, appeared regularly on NBC’s “Saturday Night Live” and wrote for the comedy show. He then hosted a national radio program before returning to his home state to challenge Coleman.

Coleman, 59, a former state prosecutor and mayor of St. Paul, won the Senate seat in 2002 and was seeking a second term.

The first recount by a state canvassing board of the more than 2.4 million votes cast for the two men was required under state law after an initial tally showed Coleman ahead of Franken by a few hundred votes. The recount gave Franken the 255-vote lead.

‘Significant Errors’

Coleman challenged that finding, and the three-judge panel began hearing his case on Jan. 26. After a count of 351 absentee ballots increased Franken’s lead by 87 votes, Ginsberg said the court had made “significant errors” that justified an appeal.

On March 6, the Minnesota Supreme Court rejected Franken’s bid to temporarily serve in the Senate while the three-judge panel heard Coleman’s challenge. Pawlenty had refused to certify Franken as the winner, saying state law barred certification until Coleman’s court challenge was resolved.

Pawlenty spokesman Brian McClung said in an e-mailed statement April 7 that the governor “will issue an election certificate at the appropriate time.” He didn’t elaborate on when that would be.

Minnesota Secretary of State Mark Ritchie, a Democrat, previously said he would sign an election certificate after the state Supreme Court rules on Coleman’s expected appeal, though the certificate would have to be prepared by Pawlenty.

To contact the reporters on this story: Christopher Stern in Washington at cstern3@bloomberg.net; Beth Hawkins in St. Paul, Minnesota, or hawkins@visi.com

Last Updated: April 14, 2009 15:11 EDT