2000 Election Bush vs. Gore
                                                                      Samantha Paz

                        

-The Presidential election that took place on November 7, 2000, was so close that no one knew for more than a month who had won the election of 2000: Texas Governor George W. Bush (R), or Vice President Al Gore (D). 

-Nationally, Bush had won 246 electoral votes; Gore had won 260. The number of electoral votes needed to win the election is 270.

-Florida’s twenty-five electoral votes hung in the balance.

-Bush led Gore in Florida by 1784 votes. 

-The machine recount required by Florida law in extremely close elections narrowed Bush’s lead. As allowed under state law, Gore requested hand recounts in four heavily Democratic counties. 

-Not all of the four counties were able to complete their recounts by the legal deadline, even after the Florida Supreme Court extended it. 

-The deadline passed, and Florida’s Secretary of State declared that Bush had won Florida, and therefore, the Presidency.

-Gore officially contested the Florida election results. 

-The Florida Supreme Court said that accuracy was more important than finality, and ordered a statewide manual recount. This was not part of Florida law. 

-This was also something neither Bush nor Gore had asked for.