Gore tries for state recount, Bush refuses

TALLAHASSEE - Democrat Al Gore called yesterday for a statewide manual recount of Florida's disputed vote in the United States presidential election but Republican George W. Bush rejected the proposal, saying it would not be fair or accurate.

Gore and Bush, both trying to look stately and presidential before television cameras, battled for the heart of American public opinion as their lawyers fought pitched legal battles over the vote-counting in Florida that will determine who becomes the next President.

Gore offered to either accept the verdict of Florida once hand recounts are completed in the heavily Democratic counties of Palm Beach, Miami-Dade and Broward counties, or to accept the result of a statewide recount.

Both Bush, the Texas Governor, who currently leads in Florida by a mere 300 votes out of nearly 6 million cast, and Gore, who leads the national popular vote, need Florida's 25 electoral votes to get the 270 votes needed to win.

"This is a time to respect every voter and every vote," Gore told reporters at his Washington residence with vice-presidential running mate Joe Lieberman at his side. "This is a time to honour the true will of the people. So our goal must be what is right for America."

Hours later, Bush appeared at the Texas Governor's mansion to explain why Gore's proposal was "neither fair nor accurate."

"This process must be accurate. As Americans have watched on television, they have seen for themselves that manual counting, with individuals making subjective decisions about voter intent, introduces human error and politics into the vote-counting process," Bush said.

In defiance of the Gore camp, the Florida Secretary of State, Katherine Harris, a Republican, announced in Tallahassee she would not accept the results of a manual recount of ballots in Palm Beach, Miami-Dade and Broward counties. Harris, Florida's top election official, said the three counties had given "insufficient" reasons for seeking to amend their vote tallies with the results of the manual recount.

She said the current tally - which shows Bush ahead - would be certified as official on Sunday after taking account of absentee ballots from overseas.

Gore campaign chairman Bill Daley called her announcement "rash and precipitate" and vowed to challenge it in a Florida state court.

In his statement, Gore also proposed a one-on-one meeting with Bush as soon as possible "not to negotiate, but to improve the tone of our dialogue in America."

Bush said he would be happy to meet Gore - after the election winner was decided.

"The outcome of the election will not be the result of deals or efforts to mould public opinion. The outcome of this election will be determined by the votes and by the law," said Bush.

And not to be outdone by Gore, he said he joined the Vice-President "in pledging that regardless of who wins, after this weekend's final count, we will work together to unite our great country."

Gore made his offers after former Secretary of State James Baker accused the Democrats of seeking delays until they could find a way to change the results.

Baker, who claimed Gore's side had filed 12 lawsuits, said the litigation had "run amok."

"By now the Gore campaign strategy I think is crystal clear: keep conducting selected recounts, keep filing lawsuits, keep making false charges that divert attention and keep refusing to accept any deadline until the results change."

But Gore argued a recount would not delay unduly a final decision. He said if there were no further interruptions to the process, the statewide count could be completed within seven days of starting.

Gore's team scored a victory when the Supreme Court of Florida, seven justices all appointed by Democrats, refused an application by Harris to stop recounts.

Bush's legal team had joined Harris in asking the court to order counties to halt manual recounts and consolidate all election lawsuits in one Tallahassee court. They were also fighting the recount on the federal appellate level in Atlanta.

An official state count of reports from all 67 counties showed on Wednesday that Bush had 2,910,492 votes to 2,910,192 for Gore.

- REUTERS

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