Joe Miller, the Republican Senate candidate, lost another legal battle when the State Supreme Court ruled Wednesday that voters do not have to spell a write-in candidate’s name perfectly for their vote to be counted. Citing decades of legal precedent, the court ruled that votes should count as long as election officials can determine a voter’s intent. The court also ruled that there was no evidence of fraud or other irregularities in the election. Unofficial state election results show Mr. Miller losing by more than 10,000 votes to Senator Lisa Murkowski, whom he defeated in the Republican primary in August. Ms. Murkowski later returned to the race as a write-in candidate. She declared victory on Nov. 17, after a hand count of write-in votes showed her well ahead. Mr. Miller has not conceded, and he has prevented certification of the race through repeated legal challenges in state and federal court.
File photo of Joe Miller. 
Yesterday, the Alaska  ruled against Republican Senate candidate  over the counting of votes in the November elections. Miller was challenging the state election authorities over their decision to allow misspelled write-in ballots in support of his opponent, . Murkowski—the incumbent Republican senator for Alaska—lost a  to Miller and thus had to stand as a . Miller was endorsed by many in the Tea Party movement along with former Alaska governor Sarah Palin.

The court also did not find any evidence for the Miller campaign's accusation of election fraud.

Miller has no more options at the state level, but has until Monday to file any further motions to the . If the federal court decide not to accept Miller's arguments, the election will be certified for Murkowski.

In response to the state Supreme Court ruling, Miller stated: "We disagree with the court's interpretation of the election code, but respect both the rule of law and the court's place in the judicial system. We are studying the opinion and carefully considering our options."

Kevin Sweeney, the campaign manager for Lisa Murkowski's campaign said Miller "will continue to pursue his baseless claims in federal court until his money runs out." Miller is financing the lawsuits with money from the Senate Conservatives Fund, a political action committee run by Senator .



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