Nearly eight months after a plurality of Minnesota voters chose Al Franken, the state may finally be close to getting full representation in the U.S. Senate:

[Minnesota Governor Tim] Pawlenty told CNN that he would abide by whatever ruling the Minnesota Supreme Court makes in the contest, where Democrat Al Franken appears to have an upper hand.

"I'm prepared to sign [the certification] as soon as they give the green light," Pawlenty said. "I'm not going to defy an order of the Minnesota Supreme Court. That would be a dereliction of my duty."

It's not clear when the state Supreme Court will issue a ruling. Rumors on June 18 that a decision was imminent proved false.

Whenever the decision comes down, it is almost certain to be in favor of Al Franken. Expect howling from the same people who agreed with the U.S. Supreme Court on December 12, 2000, that certifying the winner quickly was more important than counting all the votes cast.

Sore loser Norm Coleman may file suit in federal court, but Pawlenty indicated on CNN that he would sign a certificate without waiting for Coleman to exhaust the federal appeals process.