It has been nearly two days since the first voting polls opened across the country, and the United States, the most powerful nation in the world, still can't decide who will fill its Oval Office for the next four years.
This election has been deemed "the weirdest election ever" by Craig Bieber, executive director of the Democratic Party of Virginia: A dead man's name won a Missouri Senate seat, the first lady will serve as a Senator for New York, and one person spent nearly $60 million on a Senate campaign.
The Senate may end up tied, and the presidential election hinges on a recount of popular votes in Florida.
But the most interesting part of the election is that "the political scientists didn't expect" its outcome, said Paul Freedman, assistant professor of government and foreign affairs.
Hillary Clinton became the first sitting first lady to be elected to a Senate seat yesterday by defeating Republican Rick Lazio by a 56 to 44 margin. In doing so, she overcame some perceptions of her as a carpetbagger hunting for an easy win.
The results of that race show that the "voters knew what they were getting," said Bieber, who attributed Clinton's victory to hard work.
In New Jersey, Democrat Jon Corzine won a Senate seat at a record cost of $60 million.
It is much easier to win an election with money and fame than without either, Freedman pointed out, referring to Corzine and Clinton.
Another odd occurrence in this election was the victory of Democratic Senate candidate Mel Carnahan from Missouri. Although Carnahan died in a plane crash nearly three weeks before the election, his widow, Jean Carnahan, had promised to take over his seat if he won. His name pulled off a win with a 2 percentage point margin.
Rumors of potential lawsuits stemming from Carnahan's victory are circulating, but, "It's over," said Larry J. Sabato, government and foreign affairs professor. Carnahan's opponent, Missouri Sen. John Ashcroft (R), conceded defeat yesterday.
Beiber said voters did not choose Carnahan out of sympathy but because of a belief in the political party and ideals he represented.
Still, most of America has been watching the presidential race.
"Other than 1960, this is the most exhilarating election I've experienced," Sabato said.
In 1960, John F. Kennedy narrowly defeated Richard Nixon by about 100,000 votes.
Many aspects of what Sabato called a "campaign from hell" remain unresolved. There is a "strong possibility that for the first time since 1888, a president could get elected with a majority of the electoral votes and a minority of popular votes," Freedman said. This situation seems very likely if Bush wins Florida.
Major networks initially called the state as a win for Vice President Al Gore, but as the race became closer, they took back that claim. Around 2:30 a.m. Wednesday, major media gave the victory back to Bush as his lead widened. Gore congratulated the Texas governor via telephone but rescinded his comments at 3:30 a.m., just as he prepared to deliver his concession speech.
"The rush to judgment on all four networks on the need for competition was a great disservice to the United States," Sabato said. The networks "don't just have egg on their face. They have breakfast, lunch and dinner."
With the Senate majority and White House still up for grabs, this election could go down in history as one of America's longest elections. "It hasn't taken this long to get results of a presidential election since the days of the Pony Express," Freedman said.
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