This was supposed to be the black community's payback to Jeb Bush. In Wakulla County, Highway Patrol troopers were stationed outside voting precincts with lights flashing, intimidating and ticketing black voters, some of whom were too afraid to vote. In overwhelmingly black Volusia County, officials say a mysterious number of votes for Gore disappeared from the totals and may not have been included in the final count. African-American citizens in Duval, Palm Beach, Broward and Hillsborough counties also say they were intimidated. Add to this the shocking intimidation of election officials in Miami-Dade County, numerous undercounts, illegal ballot handling by Republicans, and it begins to look as if the election was engineered.
Partisanship makes it difficult to assess the truth.
But imagine, if you will, reading an account of this very same election in some Third World nation. Syl Jones, of Minnetonka, is a playwright, journalist and communications consultant. With A Friend Common Dreams NewsCenter is a non-profit news service providing breaking news and views for the Progressive Community. This site contains copyrighted material the use of which has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. We are making such material available in our efforts to advance understanding of environmental, political, human rights, economic, democracy, scientific, and social justice issues, etc.