537 Votes Out of Nearly 6 Million: Florida 2000's Punch Cards #Shorts
Pack: 47 - 537 Votes Out of Nearly 6 Million Florida 2000's Punch Cards
In 2000 the presidency came down to Florida, and Florida came down to punch cards and "hanging chads." After 36 days of recounts and court fights, the certified margin was 537 votes. Told with the machines themselves, from the Smithsonian and the Florida Historic Capitol Museum.
- Many Florida counties used punch-card ballots: a stylus knocked out a chad, and some chads hung by a corner or were only dimpled (Britannica).
- The dispute ran 36 days, from November 7 to December 13, 2000 (Britannica).
- Certified Florida result: 2,912,790 to 2,912,253, a margin of 537 out of 5,963,110 votes (FEC, Federal Elections 2000).
- On December 12, 2000, in Bush v. Gore, the Supreme Court stopped Florida's recount; Gore conceded the next day (531 U.S. 98).
- The Help America Vote Act, signed October 29, 2002, funded replacing punch-card and lever machines (Pub. L. 107-252, Sec. 102; EAC).
Hand recount or machine count: which would you trust? Tell us in the comments. Full story in our documentary, The Full History of Voting in America.
Quick answers
What is “537 Votes Out of Nearly 6 Million: Florida 2000's Punch Cards” about?
In 2000 the presidency came down to Florida, and Florida came down to punch cards and "hanging chads." After 36 days of recounts and court fights, the certified margin was 537 votes. Told with the machines themselves, from the Smithsonian and the Florida Historic Capitol Museum.
What are the key facts?
Many Florida counties used punch-card ballots: a stylus knocked out a chad, and some chads hung by a corner or were only dimpled (Britannica). The dispute ran 36 days, from November 7 to December 13, 2000 (Britannica).
What sources is this Short based on?
It cites FEC, Federal Elections 2000; Britannica, United States presidential election of 2000; Bush v. Gore, 531 U.S. 98 (2000) (Justia); Help America Vote Act of 2002, Pub. L. 107-252; and 2 more. Links are in the Sources list below.
Sources
- FEC, Federal Elections 2000
- Britannica, United States presidential election of 2000
- Bush v. Gore, 531 U.S. 98 (2000) (Justia)
- Help America Vote Act of 2002, Pub. L. 107-252
- U.S. Election Assistance Commission, Help America Vote Act
- National Archives, 2000 Electoral College results
Images
- Official Palm Beach County Votomatic voting machine used in the November 7, 2000 presidential election (Florida Historic Capitol Museum) — DrReload — CC BY 4.0 —
- Votomatic III vote recorder, detail, Smithsonian NMAAHC — Computer Election Systems, Inc. via Smithsonian — CC0 —
- Florida Supreme Court during the 2000 recount, November 20, 2000 — Village Square — CC BY 2.0 —
- Votomatic III vote recorder, closed — Computer Election Systems, Inc. via Smithsonian — CC0 —
- U.S. Supreme Court building, Library of Congress 2011631106 — Carol M. Highsmith — Public domain —
- Votomatic III vote recorder, open — Computer Election Systems, Inc. via Smithsonian — CC0 —
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