2000 US Presidental Election Essay -- essays research papers

Introduction   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The US Presidential Election of 2000 featured George W. Bush and Al Gore. It will go down in history as one of the most closest elections ¡Ã‚ ¦ in US history. It also goes down as one of the most controversial. The final decision was based on just a few hundred votes in Florida. The controversy began when the media prematurely declared the winner twice based solely on exit polls. They finally conceded that the Florida count was just too close to predict. It would take a month before the election was ultimately certified after numerous court challenges and vote recounts. Republican candidate George W. Bush was declared the winner of the Florida ¡Ã‚ ¦s 25 electoral votes. This was a victory by a razor thin margin of popular votes. It was just the fourth time in United States history that a candidate had won the Presidency while losing the popular vote. How could this be and furthermore, how could this happen? Is this just the tip of the iceberg that election ref orm is necessary? We need to insure that every American vote counts. This is supposed to be the basis of getting Americans to the voting booths according to our founding fathers. So what can be done to make sure that every vote DOES count? The Campaign   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Al Gore was chosen by the Democratic Party as their choice for nomination. Al Gore had previously served under US President, Bill Clinton, and was immediately the front runner as the party ¡Ã‚ ¦s top choice. His choice for Vice President was Senator Joseph Lieberman of Connecticut. Leiberman was also the first person of Jewish dissent to be name to a national party ticket. His choice of Lieberman was determined to have been made to separate Gore from the scandals of President Clinton. It was necessary for Al Gore to distance himself as far as possible from the inherited connections. He declared himself as defender of the people against large corporations, special interest groups, and the powerful. He pledged to extend Medicare to assist senior citizens purchase prescription drugs, push for a universal health care system, lower crime rates, and maintain the strength of our standing army.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Al Gore began his campaign trail by attacking George W. Bush ¡Ã‚ ¦s tax plans. A firm believer that these plans were only intended to benefit the most wealthy of America ¡Ã‚ ¦s citizens.... ...her. Why vote if their vote won ¡Ã‚ ¦t be counted? Conclusion   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  There are both advantages and disadvantages in the current Electoral College System. Some of the advantages include the contribution of the cohesiveness of the country by requiring a distribution of the popular support to be elected president. It can also enhance the status of minority interest. It maintains the political stability of the nations with the encouragement of a two party system. It also maintains a federal system of government and representation.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Disadvantages that are considered are the possibility of electing a minority president. Also the possibility of the Electoral College ¡Ã‚ ¦s role in suppressing voter turnout. It also could fail to accurately reflect the national popular choice.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  It can be argued that we shouldn ¡Ã‚ ¦t change what our founding fathers intended. However, we must also remember that they denied the vote to blacks and women at first. They also didn ¡Ã‚ ¦t trust citizens to elect US Senators as well. Things change with time for good reasons. It is time to change the voting process in the United States today.