Story:
Three Reasons Why Election Day May Not Decide the Election, 10/27/04
1. Why was a recount ordered in Florida after the 2000 presidential election?
2. Who made the final decision about who would be president?
3. What is Amendment 36 in Colorado?
4. How might Amendment 36 affect the outcome of the election?
5. What is happening in Ohio that may delay election results?
6. What is a "provisional ballot?"
7. What is the controversy over provisional ballots?
8. Why is South Charleston, WV, Mayor Richie Robb making news? Discussion Activity (more research might be needed): 1. Using NewsHour Extra's lesson on the Electoral College at http://www.pbs.org/newshour/extra/teachers/lessonplans/socialstudies/Vote2004/electoral_college.html, examine the electoral system in this country. Is the current system a fair way to elect a president? Why or why not? If not, what sort of system might work better? How does Colorado's proposed system measure up? 2. According to a Cal Tech/MIT study, an estimated four to six million votes may have been lost during the 2000 election. What does this say about the country's voting process? Is that unacceptable in a Democracy, or is it a given that in an election where 111 million people voted some votes were bound to be lost? 3. Check out the following Web site: http://www.lwv.org/. What should a voter do if he shows up to the polls to vote and finds out he's been left off the registrar's list? Write a 500-800 word essay on any of these topics providing clear examples. Send your completed editorial to NewsHour Extra [extra@newshour.org]. Exceptional essays might be published on our Web site. |