As it became apparent that the race was too close to call, Gore went on the offensive, retracting his earlier statement conceding defeat. He reportedly also called Bush a second time to retract hos concession of defeat. It also appears at this time that Bush has a slender 1210-vote lead over Gore, with at least 5,000 votes yet to be counted, leaving plenty of margin for the election to swing either way. Added to this are reports that overseas have not yet been counted and that some states are yet to report their absentee ballots. Florida state officials announced a recount to examine counting discrepancies in a state that will make all the difference.
State law requires a recount when the final vote margin is less than one-half of one percent.
Meanwhile, most American networks retracted earlier stories announcing Bush as the 43rd President of the United States. Republican George W. Bush, however, was inching closer to victory in Tuesday's presidential election and his party was favored to keep control of both houses of Congress, raising the prospect of a new era of Republican dominance in the United States. After a nail-biting night of results, the Texas governor seemed on the verge of finally clinching the presidency after carrying 29 states, mostly in the nation's conservative heartland and in the South. His Democratic opponent, Vice President Al Gore, dominated most of the big industrial states and retained a mathematical chance of winning the election if he could carry Florida. But Bush led by 75,000 votes with 10 percent of the precincts still to count.