Miller's announcement late Sunday paves the way for Murkowski - a write-in candidate after losing the Republican nomination to Miller - to eventually be declared winner of the race.
Election officials determined Murkowski had the most votes in the November election but were barred from certifying a victory by a federal judge, who issued a stay to give the courts time to rule on Miller's claims the vote count was mishandled. Sunday's decision means Miller won't file any motions to stop the court from lifting the stay.
Miller said he wants to ensure Alaska has full representation when senators are sworn in for the new term of Congress on Jan. 5.
U.S. District Judge Ralph Beistline, who is hearing Miller's federal court challenge, must still decide whether to lift his stay before the state can move ahead with certification. There was no immediate word on when that might occur.
Unofficial results showed Murkowski leading Miller by 10,328 votes, or 2,169 if ballots challenged by Miller observers during a weeklong hand count were excluded. She has declared victory, and called on Miller to concede.
The law calls for write-in ballots to have the ovals filled and the candidate's last name or name as it appears on the declaration of candidacy written in. Miller believes the state should be held to a strict reading of that law, and his attorneys argued that spelling mattered.
The state, pointing to precedent, used discretion in determining voter intent and allowed for ballots with misspellings to be counted toward Murkowski's tally.
For more election-related news and information, visit our California Elections 2010 page.
This article appeared on page A - 8 of the San Francisco Chronicle
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