Daily Digest: Election leftovers

Good morning and welcome to Tuesday. Here's the Digest.

1. A recount of votes in a pivotal state Senate race got underway Monday in Benton and Sherburne counties with Stearns County on tap for Tuesday. The recount will determine whether Republican Jerry Relph's 148-vote victory over DFLer Dan Wolgamott in Senate District 14 stands up. More importantly, it will dictate which party has a 34-to-33 seat Senate majority entering next year's legislative session. (MPR News)

2. DFL Congressman Keith Ellison suggested late last week that he may be willing to resign his seat if he becomes chair of the Democratic National Committee. And that has led to a lot of interest in replacing him. Two DFL state lawmakers say they would want the job, as does the Republican who lost to Ellison last month, (Pioneer Press)

3. Some University of Minnesota employees and their spouses attended games at U.S. Bank Stadium in luxury suites as guests of the the Minnesota Sports Facilities Authority and will now reimburse the authority for their tickets. The university disclosed the names of the employees "to avoid any controversy and appearance whatsoever of impropriety." (Star Tribune)

4. In North Carolina Republican Gov. Pat McCrory conceded his re-election bid to Democrat Attorney General Roy Cooper on Monday, after nearly a month of demanding a recount. McCrory made his concession in a YouTube video, saying it was time to "celebrate our democratic process and respect what I see to be the ultimate outcome of the closest North Carolina governor's race in modern history." (CNN)

5. What could President-elect Donald Trump have to talk about with former Vice President Al Gore? Trump didn't say anything and Gore said little after Monday's meeting. From this story: "Gore has spent decades warning about the dire consequences of unchecked, man-made climate change, while Trump regularly called climate change "a hoax" during the campaign. Initially, the session was not even expected to include the president-elect. According to the transition spokesman, it was scheduled as a sit-down between Gore and Trump's daughter, Ivanka, who is a member of the official transition team." (NPR)

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