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Thursday
November 9, 2000
6tabenow
victorious,
GOP still
Jas Senate
By Jeremy W. Peters
Daily Staff Reporter
p r{ F i b s a4 w a l o~ i ' .
I
RECOUNTING
When Debbie Stabenow was official-
ly declared the winner of Michigan's
Senate race at 10 a.m. yesterday, she
became one of three new Democratic
enators, giving Democrats a total of 49
ats with the possibility of one more.
There is still one senate seat in Wash-
ington state that has yet to be awarded in
this, one of the closest senatorial elec-
tion years in U.S. history.
Regardless of how many seats her
party ends up holding, Stabenow's cam-
paign was elated at their victory.
"It certainly was a challenge,"
Stabenow spokeswoman Karen Polla
said. "But the real credit goes to the vot-
rs of Michigan who came out in record
umbers and made a clear choice
between the status quo ... and someone
who will fight for Michigan families."
The total, with 99 percent of precincts
reporting, was 2,042,086 for Stabenow
and 1,985,698 for Sen. Spence Abra-
ham.
Early speculation on election night
projected Stabenow as the winner after
some local newspapers and television
tions had already declared her victo-
rious. Later on and into the early morn-
ing this prediction changed as more
ballots were counted.
"We were certainly optimistic in the
evening, but the race was very close,"
Polla said. "We felt that unless we were
100 percent sure we couldn't declare
anything. Especially with what hap-
pened in the presidential race."
According to the Stabenow cam-
ign, Abraham telephoned the Lansing
ngresswoman to congratulate her at
around 9 a.m., just before he delivered
his concession speech.
The Abraham campaign did not
return phone calls yesterday, but was
clearly in a state of distress as of early
yesterday morning when the senator
summoned his staff and family to his
hotel room after delivering his only
speech before conceding.
Abraham officials seemed remotely
upbeat yesterday as they answered their
phones "Abraham 2002," indicating the
senator may run against Democrat Carl
Levin when his seat is up that year.
All in all, Abraham's defeat was one
in a number of significant Senate losses
for Republicans on Tuesday night.
The Senate presently stands divided
at 50 to 49 with the Republicans barely
hanging on to a majority. Whether
Maria Cantwell, the Democratic chal-
nger in Washington state, defeats
incumbent Slade Gorton will determine
the margin of the GOP majority.
If Cantwell wins, the Senate would be
equally divided. This would mean the
vice president, who has not yet been
declared, would cast tie-breaking votes.
Either way the situation in the Senate
turns out, a tie between the parties or a
one or two seat GOP majority, the likeli-
od of legislative gridlock is very real.
"It's going to contribute to deadlock"
history Prof. Sidney Fine said. "At the
beginning of a new presidency, Con-
gress likes to go along with the presi-
dent. There's a bit of a honeymoon. But
eventually it breaks down and it won't
be long before there's gridlock."
Joseph Lieberman's insistence on
running for his Senate seat while run-
ning for Vice President did little for
improving Democratic chances in the
nate, Fine added.
"There is a precedent for a senator
running for his senate seat and being a
candidate for the vice presidency at the
same time. Lyndon Johnson did it in
1960 ... but when you do this you're
hedging your bets," Fine said. "It would
look like you're not sure of winning."
iwff 2000
VELL
BLANCHARD 200
PREPARES TO
RETURN
MICHIGAN TO
GLORY.
THE.NIGHT
T Rl'IL C. btis evCeig117
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) -- Florida officials
began recounting nearly 6 million ballots yesterday
to determine the next president, while Democrats
and some voters complained of election irregulari-
ties.
Partial results showed Vice President Al Gore cut-
ting into Texas Gov. George W. Bush's lead.
The recount in all 67 counties was triggered by
state law because Republican Bush led Democrat
Gore by less than one-half of I percentage point.
State officials said they expect to finish by the end
E of the day today.
Florida elections supervisors also waited for an
undetermined number of overseas ballots, primarily
from military personnel and their families. The state
allows 10 days after the election for the ballots to
come in.
The state counted about 2,300 overseas ballots in
the 1996 election - more than the margin separat-
ing Gore and Bush this time - so there is a remote
possibility that those ballots alone could change the
outcome.
The Florida totals, including all absentee bal-
lots received so far, showed Bush with
2,909,135 votes and Gore with 2,907,351 - a
difference of 1,784 in a state with 8.75 million
registered voters.
After 32 of Florida's 67 counties were recounted
yesterday, Gore had gained 843 votes.
Pinellas County, which includes St. Petersburg,
will have to redo its count because a poll worker
inadvertently failed to run an unknown number of
ballots through its computer yesterday, county
Supervisor of Elections Deborah Clark said. The
county retracted its original announcement that Gore
had gained 404 votes and Bush dropped by 61 votes
in its recount.
The scrutiny was intense because Florida and its
APPHOT 25 electoral votes will decide the next president. In
an added twist, the state's governor, Jeb Bush, is the
ready to be inserted in Republican nominee's younger brother.
"We thought it would be close. Never in my
wildest dreams did I ever imagine it would be this
close," Jeb Bush told reporters yesterday.
Two former secretaries of state -- Warren
Christopher for Gore and James A. Baker III for
he folly on their nation- Bush - were heading monitoring teams sent to
ews hours. Florida yesterday.
an Tuesday night when Even before the recount, the Gore campaign was
on networks called the already eyeing legal options for forcing a new vote
aturely and at 8 p.m. it in Palm Beach County, where confusion over how to
had carried the third fill out the ballot may have boosted the tally for Pat
tion. Buchanan, a senior Gore adviser said, speaking on
ve pressure of the net- condition of anonymity.
In Florida and elsewhere, Democrats grumbled
am of analysts advised about long lines at the polls, reports that ballots were
race but the other net- late in arriving at polling places and other possible
ing all the networks to irregularities.
INSET: The Austin-Anerican Statesman declares Texas Gov. George W. Bush the winner.
ABOVE: Jeff Draker, a systems administrator with the Palm Beach County Elections Office, gets another box of cards
computers as election officials recount the votes in the presidential election.
'U' Prof relives Election Night4
By Yael Kohen
Daily Staff Reporter
' The networks twice called the Florida elec-
tion results and both times they were wrong
- resulting in election night mayhem.
Neither Al Gore or George W. Bush have
officially claimed the presidency.
"I pleaded: Don't call it, don't call," Uni-
versity political science Prof. Chris Achen
said yesterday. Achen returned yesterday
from New York City where he was part of
an ABC team that analyzed the exit poll data
provided by the Voter News Service for
accuracy.
VNS provides exit polling data to all the
major networks including ABC, NBC, Fox,
CBS, CNN and The Associated Press. Each
network then has a group of analysts that
assess the data to give the network the go
ahead to call the state.
"There was a chance for disaster and we
had a disaster," he said, exhausted from the
long election night which lasted until 6 a.m.
yesterday.
News anchors yesterday admitted they
had caused some of t
ally aired television n
The confusion beg
all the major televisi
Florida results prema
looked as if GoreI
largest state in the na
"It's the competiti
works" Achen said.
Achen said his tea
against calling then
works "bolted" caus
See VNS, Page 2A
See ELECTION, Page 7A
Gore calls
R Bush to
V4 rescind his
d; concession
Fla. again
returned to
undecided
column
Democrats recapture regent seats
By Lisa Koivu
Daily Staff Reporter
Incumbent member of the University Board of
Regents Rebecca McGowan (D-Ann Arbor) said she
had a good feeling about her own race to remain on
the board after learning that Vice President Al Gore
had won Michigan's electoral votes.
"Early on I could see things moving in the direction
that would lead to my re-election," McGowan said.
McGowan received the highest numbers with
1,806,833 votes, or 25 percent of the vote and fellow
Democrat Laurence Deitch (D-Bloomfield Hills)
came in a close second with 1,711,510 votes, or 24
percent of the vote.
Republican candidates Wendy Anderson and Susy
Avery each garnered 22 percent of the vote.
Deitch said that no matter how close the numbers
were, he is happy to still be on the board. "A win is a
win," Deitch said.
McGowan said although she is happy both she and
Deitch retained their seats, party affiliation is not an
issue after being elected.
"I truly believe that you run with a party, but
when you're elected you check that credential at
the door," McGowan said. "You need to work col-
laboratively with your colleagues, whomever they
might be."
Deitch said despite the number of third party cand-
See REGENTS, Page 7A
Anderson GOP
Avery GOP
1,521,548
Byrum asks for recount after
losing 8th District barnburner
Groceries on the go I
By Hanna LoPatin
Daily Staff Reporter
Though Democratic Congressional
candidate Dianne Byrum celebrated
victory in the 8th District late Tuesday,
by 8:30 a.m. that call was retracted
with Republican Mike Rogers edging
out ahead by just 500 votes.
But Adam Wright, a spokesman
from the Byrum campaign, said they
are looking into asking for-a recount.
competing for the seat left open by
U.S. Senator-elect Debbie Stabenow is
150 votes, Wright said.
As of 3:40 p.m. yesterday Rogers
had 144,041 and Byrum had 143,517,
according to the Secretary of State.
Wright said he feels the margin is
too close not to ask for a recount.
"In a close election, small things
like this really make a difference,"
Wright said.
Roger's political director Jason
the 8th District."
Yesterday afternoon, Wright said the
Byrum campaign was consulting with
its lawyers to see if a recount will be
possible.
Inside Michigan Politics Editor Bill
Ballenger said that a recount may not
be within the candidate's jurisdiction.
"Congress is the sole arbiter of
the sitting of its members," Bal-
lenger said.
Ballenger said that if there is to be a
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