The 2000 presidential election was a groundbreaking event in American history. The entire country had an opinion on who they believed should lead America into the next millennium. The candidates were both strong politician and who were well known inside their parties and amongst the American people. Al Gore, the Vice-President at the time, was praised for the work he and Bill Clinton did in the 90's. For the first time in twelve years, Democrats were in the White House. Together Clinton and Gore tackled economic problems, foreign policies, and welfare and social security reform. Democrats were impressed by Gore's attention to environmental issues and his support of Clinton through his impeachment trials. George W. Bush Jr., son of former president George Bush, was also a popular candidate. Citizens were attracted to his "compassionate" Republican approach to politics.
[...] Electoral College: Unfair From Day One.” 36 Days: The Complete Chronicle of the 2000 Presidential Election. Ed. The New York Times. New York: Times Books Brinkley, Douglas. Introduction Days: The Complete Chronicle of the 2000 Presidential Election. Ed. The New York Times. New York: Times Books xiii-xix Canedy, Dana and Don Van Natta Jr. Case of the Butterfly Ballot.” 36 Days: The Complete Chronicle of the 2000 Presidential Election. Ed. The New York Times. New York: Times Books 10- Dworkin, Ronald. [...]
[...] The winning candidate must secure 270 electoral votes to be declared president –Bush won the 2000 election with 271 votes (Moore 15). Because of Fox News' original projection, Gore called Bush at 2:30 am and conceded. However, the fact was that the outcome of the Florida election was still ambiguous. And when Al Gore realized this he retracted his concession. In the end the count showed Bush was in the lead by 1,784. A recount began immediately (Washington Post vii). [...]
[...] The Supreme Court halted the Florida recount and eventually decided that Bush won the election –history will show that George W. Bush won Florida, and thus the presidency, by 537 votes. The problem with halting the recount is the doubt that was inevitably cast over Bush's presidency. No one knows what the recount would have shown. Bush might have still come out ahead if the recount had not been stopped. If that was the case, at least citizens could be sure that their president was elected by the American people. [...]
[...] But the reality is that many of these situations could, and would, have been avoided if the United States adopted a concrete, clear, and fair voting and election policies and laws. There should be voting booth and election standards set that all states must adhere to. A standardized ballot used all over the country would have easily prevented this “mistake”. Upon further investigation reports found that many of Florida's voting booths were almost completely deficient. In fact most of the country's voting technology dates back to the 1890's. [...]
[...] No one thought for a second that the 2000 election would produce a landslide victory for either candidate. Both campaigns predicted close results, especially in swing states like Florida and Pennsylvania. As a result Bush and Gore spent a lot of time and money on states where polls were close. It was apparent that every single vote would count this year. However, this was not the case during the 2000 election. In fact, this has never been the case. Many people stress the importance of votes, but in an average election of the votes are discarded due to irregular or unclear ballots. [...]
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