The National Bureau of Standards reported in 1988 that "It is generally not possible to exactly duplicate a count obtained on pre-scored punch cards..." The problem lies with the loose pieces of paper, chads, that remain attached to the punch card due to incomplete punches (see Florida Recount Issue). The question facing Florida officials and the country is what constitutes a "fair" vote?

The Bush campaign feels the machine counts should be sufficient. They have noted repeatly the vote on election day constituted a first count, and the recount which was mandated by Florida law resulted in a second count. They claim further "recounts" are unnecessary, and more importantly, that these additional counts may open the door to fraud, tampering or manipulation of the ballots.

The Gore camp points out the initial Florida count on election night showed Bush in the lead with about 1,700 votes. After the mandatory second count, Bush's lead dropped to around 300 votes. Citing the findings from the 1988 National Bureau of Standards, Gore supporters feel a hand count is the only way to obtain an accurate count. One irony is George W. Bush, as governor of Texas, recently signed legislation that mandates hand counts in closely contested elections.

Bush supporters claim a hand count allows reviewers to guess at the voter's intent. Illustration B captures a Bush supporter arguing their position on a nightly news broadcast. Yet, the legal history shows determining the "intent" of a voter is within the jurisdiction of election officials (see Determining Voter Intent).

News reports have captured the process of hand counting the ballots. The situation is highly guarded. Each examiner is supervised by one Republican and one Democratic official. Examiners must handle the ballot with care (as shown in Illustration C). The examiners quickly record the clearly punched ballots. They also easily count ballots with hanging chads (one corner attached) swinging chads (two corner's attached). Interpretation occurs when examiners encounter a tri-chad (three corners attached) , a pregnant chad (where the chad is indented but not perforated) or a dimple (the chad is bulging, but not pierced, by the voter's stylus).

In the cases where interpretation is required, the ballot goes to a review body. Illustration D (at right) shows the review process in Palm Beach County. The chair is assisted by five officials. Both Bush and Gore representatives assist in the decision process.

The question is left to the public. As nearly 50 million voters supported each of the candidates, the states are high. While one man must win - and one must lose - it is critical the process results in a "fair" count. On the one hand, Gore supporters ask for a hand count as "we know machines make mistakes." Bush loyalists claim that machines are less likely to introduce human bias into the review. One thing is certain, one group will be highly disappointed with the outcome. If Florida officials cannot undertake this process in a manner that is perceived as "fair," the election, and possibly our entire political system, could suffer a significant loss in legitimacy. As we are a nation of laws, not of men and women, a loss in the perceivd legitimacy of our process could have long lasting effects.

Butterfly Ballots and Bifocals

Actual Palm Beach Florida Ballot

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