Franken's comedy had always been political, and politics became the focus of his post-SNL career. At the height of the Republican resurgence in the mid-1990s, Franken wroteRush Limbaugh Is A Big Fat Idiot and Other Observations, which became a New York Times No. 1 bestseller and firmly entrenched Franken as a political figure. In 1998, Franken was the co-creator of the NBC sitcom Lateline, a send-up of ABC's political talk-show Nightline in which he also starred. It lasted a mere 19 episodes.

Franken returned to writing, penning 1999's Why Not Me?, a faux-autobiographical novel detailing a fictional presidential run (based on the sole issue of ATM processing fees) and subsequent collapse of his administration. He was named a Harvard University fellow for his next political book. Research included a controversial gag in which he wrote letters to politicians that support abstinence-only education, asking them to share their personal abstinence stories. 2004's Lies and the Lying Liars Who Tell Them: A Fair and Balanced Look at the Right was another No. 1 best-seller.

FOX Lawsuit

The title, and a subsequent shouting match between Franken and Fox News' O'Reilly at a BookExpoAmerica panel discussion, prompted Fox News to file an unsuccessful lawsuit against Franken, claiming "fair and balanced" was its trademark phrase.

It wasn't much of a surprise when Franken sought a prominent role in the launch of lefty Air America radio, which he ushered into existence on March 31, 2004, "from a bunker 3,500 feet under Dick Cheney's bunker." Hosting the flagship program, The Al Franken Show, with 1.5 million listeners a week, Franken established a solid foothold in a medium generally dominated by right-wing commentators. "I didn't want to sit on the sidelines," he said.

Running for Office

When Franken wrote yet another political book, The Truth, began blogging for The Huffington Post, created a political action committee (called "Midwest Values") and moved back to Minnesota in 2005, rumors swirled that the relocation was prompted by a desire for political office - something he had discussed as early as 2003. Sure enough, Franken immediately entrenched himself in local politics, making numerous appearances for Democratic politicians. On February 14, 2007, the final day of his Air America show, Franken announced he would run for Coleman's Senate seat as a Democratic-Farmer-Labor candidate.

The state Republican Party did not hesitate to dive into a treasure trove of controversial activities Franken undertook as an entertainer, highlighting a Playboy article he had written titled, "Porn-O-Rama!" Franken defended his work as satire, received the Minnesota DFL endorsement over activist Jack Nelson-Pallmeyer and went on to defeat personal-injury lawyer Priscilla Lord Faris in the primary, 65 percent to 30 percent.

Coleman had a wide lead in general-election polling until the entrance into the race of Independence Party candidate Dean Barkley, who replaced ex-Sen. Paul Wellstone (D-Minn.) in 2002 after he died tragically in a plane crash. Franken proved a surprising policy wonk on the campaign trail, using his talk-show experience to speak with unexpected precision on many issues. By Election Day, the contest was widely seen as a virtual toss-up.

Recount and 2008 Election Challenges

Fox News called the race for Coleman after election night figures showed him ahead by 726 votes; the official tally later adjusted that to the razor-thin margin of 215 votes, triggering a mandatory recount required by state law.

The hand recount began on Nov. 19, 2008, with lawyers and party operatives from both parties observing the process. Votes that were labeled "undetermined" were sent to the bipartisan State Canvassing Board, which attempted to determine voter intent for each disputed ballot. Further, the board recommended that counties examine their absentee ballots to make sure none had been improperly rejected, a move that Coleman opposed; those ballots found to be "undetermined" were also sent to the board. Combining the new counts from these processes, election officials certified a new total on Jan. 5, 2009, showing Franken up by 225 votes.

Coleman pledged lawsuits on numerous issues related to the recount, and Senate Republicans said they would filibuster rather than allow Franken to be sworn-in to the U.S. Senate unless both Minnesota Secretary of State Mark Ritchie (D) and Gov. Tim Pawlenty (R) sign the election certificate.

Franken declared himself the winner and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) urged Coleman to concede. Franken's chances of being seated brightened considerably after a three judge panel on April 13, 2009, declared him the winner by a margin of 312 votes out of 312 million cast.

On Jan. 5, 2009, the Minnesota Canvassing Board certified the results of the Senate election, giving Franken a 225-margin victory out of 2.9 million over Coleman. But Coleman continued to fight, taking his case to the Minnesota Supreme Court. Just days before the Minnesota Supreme Court issued its ruling against Coleman, Gov. Pawlenty said he would follow the ruling of the court and sign Franken's election certificate if that's what the court said. Later that day, Coleman conceded, setting the stage for Senate Democrats to seat their 60th member.

Franken was sworn in on July 7, 2009, and he was given seats on some coveted committees. He will serve on the Senate Judiciary Committee, which later this summer will take on the nomination of Sonia Sotomayor, the Committee on Indian Affairs and the Special Committee on Aging. He will also take a spot on the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions, but not until after the committee marks up its health care bill.

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