High Court Weighs in on Presidential Election
W A S H I N G T O N, Dec. 4 -- The text of the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling on Bush’s appeal of a Florida Supreme Court decision that commanded the state to respect hand recounts of votes in four counties that had previously been rejected by Florida’s secretary of state.
SUPREME COURT OF THE UNITED STATES
No. 00-836
GEORGE W. BUSH, PETITIONER v. PALM BEACH COUNTY CANVASSING BOARD, et al.
ON WRIT OF CERTIORARI TO THE FLORIDA SUPREME COURT
[December 4, 2000]
PER CURIAM
The Supreme Court of the State of Florida interpreted its elections statutes in proceedings brought to require manual recounts of ballots, and the certification of the recount results, for votes cast in the quadrennial Presidential election held on November 7, 2000. Governor George W. Bush, Republican candidate for the Presidency, filed a petition for certiorari to review the Florida Supreme Court decision. We granted certiorari on two of the questions presented by petitioner: whether the decision of the Florida Supreme Court, by effectively changing the State’s elector appointment procedures after election day, violated the Due Process Clause of 3 U.S. C. Section 5, and whether the decision of that court changed the manner in which the State’s electors are to be selected, in violation of the legislature’s power to designate the manner for selection under Art. II, Section 1, cl.2 of the United States Constitution. 531 U.S. ___ (2000)
On November 8, 2000, the day following the Presidential election, the Florida Division of Elections reported that Governor Bush had received 2, 909,135 votes, and respondent Democrat Vice President Albert Gore., Jr., had received 2,907,351, a margin of 1,784 in Governor Bush’s favor. Under Fla. Stat. Section 102.141(4) (2000), because the margin of victory was equal to or less than one-half of one percent of the votes cast, an automatic machine recount occurred. The recount resulted in a much smaller margin of victory for Governor Bush. Vice President Gore than exercise his statutory right to submit written requests for manual recounts to the canvassing board of any county. See Section 102.166. He requested recounts in four counties: Volusia, Palm Beach, Broward, and Miami-Dade.
The parties urged conflicting interpretations of the Florida Election Code respecting the authority of the canvassing boards, the Secretary of State (hereinafter Secretary) and the Elections Canvassing Commission. On November 14, in an action brought by Volusia County, and joined by the Palm Beach County Canvassing Board, Vice President Gore, and the Florida Democratic Party, the Florida Circuit Court ruled that the statutory 7-day deadline was mandatory, but that the Volusia board could amend its returns at a later date. The court further ruled that the Secretary, after “considering all attendant facts and circumstances,” App. To Pet. For Cert. 49a, could exercise her discretion in deciding whether to include the late amended returns in the statewide certification.
The Secretary responded by issuing a set of criteria by which she would decide whether to allow a late filing. The Secretary ordered that, by 2 p.m., the following day, November 15, any county desiring to forward late returns submit a written statement of the facts and circumstances justifying a later filing. Four counties submitted statements, and after reviewing the submissions, the Secretary determined that none justified an extension of the filing deadline. On November 16, the Florida Democratic Party and Vice President Gore filed an emergency motion in the state court, arguing that the Secretary had acted arbitrarily and in contempt of the court’s earlier ruling. The following day, the court denied the motion, ruling that the Secretary had not acted arbitrarily and had exercised her discretion in a reasonable manner consistent with the court’s earlier ruling. The Democratic Party and Vice President Gore appealed to the First District Court of Appeal, which certified the matter to the Florida Supreme Court. That court accepted jurisdiction and sua sponte entered an order enjoining the Secretary and the Elections Canvassing Commission from finally certifying the results of the election and declaring a winner until further order of that court.
Popular Reads
ABC News Live