Former comedian and current Democratic senatorial candidate Al Franken looks set to win Minnesota’s Senate seat against Republican incumbent Norm Coleman.

The Minneapolis Star Tribune has calculated that Franken will finish the current recount process with 89 votes over Coleman. Franken sought a recount of the November vote given the incredible closeness of the contest, Mr. Coleman then lead Franken but a mere 300 some odd votes out of millions cast. Franken asked a court to include mailed in ballets and to also count ballots that were initially discarded due to certain irregularities amongst them.

Franken was successful despite opposition by the Coleman camp to get many votes counted by a state canvassing board that oversaw the process and judged the validity of every vote.

Democratic challenger Al Franken finds himself on the cusp of winning a seat in the United States Senate after Minnesota’s canvassing board awarded him a host of challenged votes during deliberations on Thursday.

As of 8PM ET, the Minneapolis Star Tribune projected that Franken would finish the recount process with a lead of 89 votes, positioning him to become the 59th senator caucusing with Democrats in the upcoming Congress.

Current tallies have Franken 5 votes behind Coleman, the AP records two votes. The Star Tribune’s is a project and one the Franken campaign states has been borne out due to internal counting recording now a lead for Franken.

If elected to the Senate, Franken would give the Democrat’s already commanding majority and even stronger hold. The Senate Democrats would then have 59 Senators, just one away from a filibuster proof majority. And even the chance that some moderate Republicans might join the Democrats, the conservative wing in Congress might find itself occasionally entirely out in the cold.

Could the Democrats find that one senator to give them 60 in the 2010 midterms? Not likely, incumbent parties historically lose seats in both houses in the first midterm.

It will be nice to see Bill O’Reily’s - Franken mortal enemy - reaction to Al’s presumed victory.