Trust in Florida

Florida officials, and eventually the federal courts, have many reasons to ensure that the Sunshine State is scrupulous in recounting votes and considering arguments from the candidates over potential voting irregularities. The most important reason is that the next president, especially considering the near-even party split in Congress, must have the moral authority to lead the nation. He will not have this if substantial questions remain over the Florida vote count.

For that reason Florida Gov. Jeb Bush took a strong and proper stand Wednesday in recusing himself from his state’s Election Canvassing Commission, which will ultimately decide the outcome, accurately noting that the integrity of the state was at stake during this recount.

With Gov. George Bush holding a tiny lead in the race for Florida’s 25 Electoral College votes, Democrats are tossing up as many ballot questions as their platoon of lawyers can think of. Many may come to nothing, but some of them deserve serious inquiry. The nation now has been shown pictures of Palm Beach County’s ballot, which even a glance says is badly, if not illegally, designed. Democrats claim Florida law requires all check marks for a candidate must appear to the right of the candidate’s name, but the ballot puts the check-mark area for Pat Buchanan to the left, next to Al Gore’s, and the reported result in that heavily Democratic county is that Mr. Buchanan did far better there than in the neighboring counties.

The errant ballot box found after the initial tally had been completed, the absence of the overseas ballot count, the suggestion by the Rev. Jesse Jackson that some voters at heavily used polling places were turned away. All of these point to making this a slow and deliberative process. Indeed, there is no reason not to. The next president isn’t sworn in for another two months. A Republican Congress, still in session, and a Democratic president currently in the White House will ably keep on eye on each other.

For these reasons, George Bush is making a mistake in pressing ahead with cabinet announcements in an effort to make Mr. Gore appear to be standing in the way of the transition of power. Mr. Bush’s announcements, instead, seem arrogant, as if the very serious situation in Florida can be ignored while he goes about his business. If Mr. Bush is ultimately declared the winner, there are better ways to begin his presidency.

For now, the American public must let Florida carefully continue with its assessment of the election, letting the state produce a result and the next president everyone can trust.