Bush Victorious in Unofficial Recount

Historically Close Race Comes Down to Florida

Curious, George? Texas governor George W. Bush claimed victory this morning. (photo courtesy the New York Times)

An unofficial result of the ballot recount in Florida revealed Gov. George W. Bush won the presidential election with an extremely thin margin over Vice President Al Gore.

As the figures came in, Bush's tenuous lead in the historic election continued to erode, yet maintained sufficiently to win the race. With all of the 67 counties recounted, Bush had a lead of only 327 votes, according to CNN at 11 a.m. today.

"The vote count on Tuesday night showed Gov. Bush won Florida's election and a recount has now confirmed his victory," Bush campaign spokesperson Karen Hughes said in a statement released early this morning. The unofficial tally, compiled by the Associated Press and released before dawn, does not technically allow Bush to claim victory, as election officials are required to wait at least a week in order to certify the vote totals. Although the Bush campaign claimed the presidency, several factors could affect or delay the official results, such as possible legal action taken over confusing ballots in Palm Beach, Fla.

The Associated Press reported Bush's final lead as 327 votes out of almost 6 million cast in Tuesday's election, in contrast with his seeming 1,784 lead before the recount.

It was thought that the final decision in this gut-wrenchingly close election may have hinged on Florida's outstanding overseas ballots, which will be considered valid until Nov. 17 as long as they were postmarked by election day. Former Secretary of State Warren Christopher observed the recount on behalf of the Gore campaign, and told CNN this morning, "Until the overseas votes come in, until there is an official count, this will not be concluded."

"We can't just keep counting votes until Al Gore likes the outcome," said Hughes to reporters this morning in Austin, Texas. The recount was undertaken automatically as a result of a Florida law requiring a recount if a candidate wins the election by a margin of less than one half of 1 percent of the total vote. After the first count Tuesday, Bush led by less than three one-hundredths of 1 percent, according to the New York Times.

Florida's votes were crucial to the final outcome of the election, as they would vault one of the candidates over the 270 electoral vote count to win the race. According to the New York Times, Gore currently holds 255 and Bush, at 271, will barely squeak over the required 270-vote mark by capturing Florida's 25 electoral votes. An unofficial count of the other 49 states gave Gore 260 electoral votes, but that figure could change in closely contested states such as New Mexico, where thousands of overseas ballots have yet to be counted.

In such a tight election, individual votes counted for more than they ever had before. Green Party candidate Ralph Nader fell short of his goal of getting 5 percent of the popular vote, managing to garner 2,685,168 votes, according to CNN. Reform Party candidate Pat Buchanan got 442,052 votes.

The closeness of the election has caused much confusion this week, with news organizations which asserted candidates capture of states before all the ballots were counted, later having to retract. The confusion over the recount has been made worse by controversy over allegedly illegal or damaged ballots in Palm Beach County. Citing confusing ballots distributed only in Palm Beach and not elsewhere in Florida, 47 Gore supporters accidentally wound up voting for Buchanan, and thousands more ballots were thrown out because two holes were punched. Buchanan had his strongest showing in Delray Beach, although a New York Times survey of 200 people showed that not one intended to vote for him. Some voters voided their ballots by punching two holes after realizing they had voted for Buchanan, but others left the booths without realizing their mistake in time to correct it. Many said they did not realize how important their votes would become in Florida and consequently the nation until it was too late. The Gore campaign has pledged to back the Palm Beach residents who choose to dispute ballots.

Republicans have defended the ballots, saying they were easy to understand and the voters, primarily senior citizens, should be held accountable for their incorrect votes.

Election law gives Florida courts the opportunity to order a new election that could change the results if they decide that problematic ballots have illegally caused voters to cast a ballot contrary to their intentions. The courts have been hesitant to take legal action in the face of such an unprecedented close election.

The discrepancy between Gore, who seems to have won the popular vote by a razor thin margin, and Bush, the unofficial winner of the electoral vote, has raised questions about the legitimacy and fairness of the Electoral College. If Bush has indeed won the election, it will be the first time since 1888 that the winner of the popular vote will not take office. According to CNN, Gore led with 49,108,134 popular votes while Bush lagged slightly behind with 48,889,437.

To add to the confusion, a recount of ballots in one New Mexico county, which could potentially change Gore's statewide lead, was delayed today with no explanation. Although the votong problems were irregular, at this point New Mexico's five electoral votes should have no bearing on the national election.