 |
|||
|
12. November 26:- Secretary of State Katharine Harris certified the final election results in an elaborate ceremony that was televised nationally. Bush's lead was cut in half by the Broward recount to 537 votes. It would have been reduced by another 200 votes had Harris been willing to accept the Palm Beach partial recount which came in two hours past her arbitrary deadline of 5 PM. The election officials had worked straight through the Thanksgiving holiday, but the disruptions and disputes of the Republican monitors had prevented the timely completion of the task. Joseph Lieberman, the Democratic vice-presidential candidate, announced that he and Gore would contest the official tally in the Florida courts. (The contest phase can not happen until the after the official certification and the "protest phase" is over.) Later that evening Bush, quite ignoring Lieberman and the constitutional issues, proclaimed himself to be the president-elect and demanded that Clinton make the presidential transition team benefits available to him immediately. 13. November 30:- The Republican-controlled legislature voted to convene a special session to choose a slate of pro-Bush electors. This was a fail-safe measure in the event that the recounts ordered by the courts would give the state to Gore. Governor Jeb Bush endorsed the action. Florida
legislature moves to override vote and name pro-Bush electors 14. December 4:- The
US Supreme Court vacated the Florida Supreme Court decision of November
21. The Court unanimously remanded the case back to the Florida
Supreme Court with the instruction to clarify the grounds on which
they had overruled the election authorities and extended the deadline
for certification. The implication was that the Florida's constitutional
guarantee of the right of the people to vote for the US president
was in conflict with the federal constitution's provision that the
state legislatures have the power to appoint presidential electors. Court
rulings in US election crisis attack democratic rights [5 December]
US
Supreme Court hearing highlights state conspiracy against democratic
rights [2 December] 15. December 8:- The Florida Supreme Court ordered the immediate manual recount of 43,000 undervotes statewide. This ruling overturned the previous decision by Circuit Court Judge N. Sanders Sauls in which he rejected Gore's contest of the certified election results, saying that hand recounts in selected counties were not warranted and that local canvassing boards had "discretion" to reject lawfully cast votes. During the trial Bush's own expert witness conceded that manual recounts are needed to tabulate votes in close elections where Vote-O-Matic machines are used. Bush attack on voting rights continues in arguments before Florida Supreme Court 16. December 9:- The US Supreme Court ordered a halt to the hand recount in Florida. Justices Stevens, Breyer, Ginsburg and Souter dissented, stating: "On questions of state law, we [the Court] have consistently respected the opinions of the highest courts of the States.... As a more fundamental matter, the Florida court's ruling reflects the basic principle, inherent in our Constitution and our democracy, that every legal vote should be counted." Justice Scalia, the only one of the Gang of Five to issue an opinion, took the position that "there is no right of suffrage" in a presidential election. To count the votes would "threaten irreparable harm to petitioner [George W. Bush], and to the country, by casting a cloud upon what he claims to be the legitimacy of his election." They scheduled a hearing for Monday, December 11. Supreme
Court halts Florida vote count: A black day for American democracy
|
|||
|
© Janette Rainwater 1997-2004 All rights reserved.
|
|||
 |
|||