|
By Benjamin Dryden
|
|
Wednesday, 03 November 2004 |
13:55 - Bush is leading with 254 electoral college votes (projected) against Kerry's 252. Two of the big three swing states have reported projections: Bush took Florida's 27 electoral votes, while Kerry's got Pennsylvania's 21 electoral votes. The only states left to submit projections are Ohio, New Mexico and Iowa. Of those, Ohio is the most important to the extent that it could give Bush the final push of electoral votes he needs to win- and it appears to be leaning in his favor (see blog site for details).
Bush's team is already declaring a victory, but Kerry has yet to concede. The absentee votes for Ohio- some 175,000 in all- are currently a source of controversy and the final outcome of the election may not be known for days (possibly weeks) until the lawsuits have settled and these votes have been recounted. This is because the current margin separating Bush from Kerry is approximately 135,000 votes. If most of those provisional votes are for Kerry, and if most of those which are for Kerry are found to be valid, then Bush may not be occupying the White House for another 4 years.
Projections also predict that Republicans will maintain control of both the Senate and the House of Representatives.
For a detailed breakdown of the elections state by state, and for coverage of some of the most important issues surrounding this election, check our election blog site (the most up to date information can be found there). |
