It's still not decided--at least technically.
The papers all went to bed extra-late and all get the outlines of
where things stand this morning: President Bush is leading by
about three million votes, which works out to 51 percent to 48
percent. A few states haven't been called, but Electoral
College-wise it's all about Ohio, where Bush is leading by about
145,000 votes. (Here's the official count.) One hundred percent
of precincts have reported, but there are roughly 100,000 to
200,000 provisional ballots still up in the air, plus
late-arriving absentee votes from overseas.
Republicans are also poised to gain a handful of seats in the
House and Senate. The key Dem defeated: Minority Leader Tom
Daschle. It's the first time a Senate party leader has been
booted since 1952.
In a middle-of-the-night one-minute speech, Senator John Edwards
offered an anti-concession. "Every vote counts and every vote
will be counted," he said. "We've waited four years for this
victory. We can wait one more night." Buckeye state law mandates
that provisional ballots not be counted for 10 days.
President Bush was about to claim victory, but held off,
apparently because most networks haven't called OH (the
exceptions: Fox and NBC) and neither has Ohio's secretary of
state--though AP and ABC News reported that the White House
called him last night to...discuss things.
Meanwhile, lawyers are buttoning up their briefcases and
preparing for battle.
"We're ready, we're on the field and we're armed," one state GOP
lawyer told the Washington Post.
As for the concern about widespread snafus and intimidation: It
didn't happen. There were a series of lawsuits in Ohio, from both
sides--and the long lines stations there had five-hour lines--but
the much fought-over Republican fraud watchers mostly just sat
around quietly taking notes. "So far, the biggest story is what
didn't happen," said one widely quoted analyst. "There have been
no bigs but lots of littles."
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