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7:00 PM Eastern Time



From NBC News, this is Decision 2000 Election Coverage. Here is Brian Williams.

Brian Williams: "Good Evening, it's 7 o'clock in the evening here on the east cost and polls have just closed in five more states."

Williams: "We can now go to a projection. NBC News projects that Vice-President Gore will win in the state of Vermont, giving him their three electoral votes. We can now also project that when all the votes are counted, Governor Bush will win the state of South Carolina. We can also project that, again when all the votes are counted, Governor Bush will win the state of Virginia. This brings the Vice-President on the board with three electoral votes, and Governor Bush with forty-one votes."

Williams: "But the big story tonight is Florida, with it's twenty-five electoral votes, it is simply too close to call. We were told in the lead up to this campaign that this would be a close state, one that we would be watching throughout the night, and it seems to be coming true here tonight."



Williams: "We now turn to Chris Matthews, what do you make of it so far?"

Chris Matthews: "Well let's start with Vermont, no surprise there, the only state in the United States to elect an open Socialist Bernie Saunders, excuse me, Sanders, very far to the left politically, very green, fitting for the Green Mountain State. As for Virginia and South Carolina, very unsurprising, the south is Bush country, I expect he'll sweep the entire region from Virginia to Texas, including Oklahoma, and maybe even Tennessee and Arkansas, but we will see later tonight."

Williams: "Interesting though Chris, in Florida, Georgia, and New Hampshire we have a horse race!"

Matthews: "New Hampshire is an interesting state, it's the only state in New England that would probably vote for a Republican. Georgia is interesting, it was believed to be a safe Republican state, but Florida is again no surprise. The Bush brothers were canvassing the state yesterday, and there's heavy turnout in South Florida, boosting the Vice-President's vote totals."

Williams: "Thanks Chris, we're keeping a watch on this down there. Turning to the Senate race in Florida, the Senate race down there between Bill Nelson and Bill McCollum is still too close to call. In Georgia, we can project that Zell Miller, the popular former Governor, has been elected there. In Vermont, there's no surprise here that the incumbent Republican James Jeffords was reelected..."

7:33 PM Eastern Time

Williams: "Polls have just closed in North Carolina, Ohio, and West Virginia. We can now make a projection as well here, saying with confidence that Governor Bush has carried the state of North Carolina. In both Ohio and West Virginia, the race is too close to call. This is a surprise here, where West Virginia has always been a solid and committed Democratic state. We can say with confidence that incumbent Senator Robert Byrd has been reelected in a landslide."

Williams: "We now turn to other Senate races, NBC news can now project that the Republicans have held on to the Senate seat in Florida, with Bill McCollum defeating Bill Nelson. We turn to Lester Holt for more on this, Lester?"

Lester Holt: "This is a very interesting sign for national politics, as polling was indicating that Nelson was catching up and had even surpassed McCollum in this race. The other races were all expected. Let's take a look around the country and get all of the Senate races across the county. Norah O'Donnell, what can you tell us about these races?"

Norah O'Donnell: "Starting with the races we know, Richard Lugar has won reelection in Indiana, Jim Jeffords has won in Vermont. In the Commonwealth of Virginia, incumbent Chuck Robb has been defeated by the newcomer George Allen, and in Florida, Bill McCollum has defeated Bill Nelson. Democrats have only won in Georgia, with Zell Miller, and in West Virginia, with Robert Byrd winning. With Florida and Virginia sending Republicans to the Senate, and called so early, this could be a very good night for the Republicans..."



8:00 PM Eastern Time



Dan Rather: "Good evening, and welcome back at the top of the hour to CBS News' coverage of the 2000 Election. Polls have closed in twelve more states, and we will bring you projections based on our interviews we conduct with voters as they leave the polls in these states."

Rather: "Starting in New England, CBS News projects that the State of Connecticut, home of Democratic Vice-Presidential nominee Joe Lieberman has been won by Vice-President Gore. Delaware, we also project that the Vice-President has taken that state. The District of Columbia, never won by the Republicans, also goes for Al Gore. In Maine, the race is too close to call. In Maryland, the state goes to Vice-President Gore. In Massachusetts, no surprise again, votes for Gore. New Hampshire, a close battleground, is too close to call. In New Jersey, a state which has been showing itself as more and more of a swing state, is too close to call. Pennsylvania, again too close to call. Rhode Island has voted for Vice-President Gore. In Tennessee, we consider this race too close to call. Alabama we can project for Governor Bush, along with the State of Mississippi. In Illinois, they have voted for Vice-President Gore. In Missouri, we consider it too close to call. Governor Bush has also won in Oklahoma and Texas, no surprise there given his coming from the state. Moving away from this, how is this shaping up Ed?"

Ed Bradley: "What we are seeing here is surprising. There are many states that are still up in the air. On the Senate side, there are also other many surprising results. In Delaware, in a surprise, William Roth has secured his re-election. This is a very strong night for Republicans, and I think we are seeing that play out in the national vote as well."

8:09 PM Eastern Time



Judy Woodruff: "We've got a major projection in here tonight, CNN can now project that Vice-President Gore has won in the State of Florida. Again, that is Vice-President Gore taking Florida over Governor George Bush. A shocking development in what has, so far, been a very good night for the Republicans across the country."

Bill Schneider: "This is a real surprise here. As we all know, Governor Bush's brother, Jeb Bush, is the Governor of Florida, and has been campaigning with his brother almost nonstop. But here tonight, we can see that simply wasn't enough. Of course, this isn't the end of Governor Bush's campaign, he can still win the election, but it will require him to have a much stronger showing in the industrial Midwest and in the West, as well as locking down some of the states still up for grabs."

Bernard Shaw: "While we move away from the Presidential Race, let's take a look at some calls for the Senate race, some of which aren't calls, but let's start in Michigan. Incumbent Senator Abraham we can project has been comfortably re-elected over challenger Congresswoman Debbie Sabenow. In New Jersey, that open seat, it is too close to call between Jon Corzine and Congressmen Bob Franks. Corzine, of course, the man who has dropped millions on his bid there. One of the most interesting races of the night, incumbent John Ashcroft is trailing behind the recently deceased Bill Carnahan, but the race is still too close to call. His widow, Jean said she would take the seat if he were to win it. In Connecticut, Joe Lieberman has won re-election over his Republican challenger. Of course, if Al Gore wins, Lieberman will have to resign from the Senate. Unlike another network, we are projecting that William Roth, whose age has become a real issue on the campaign trail, has lost re-election and Tom Carpenter takes his seat."



Woodruff: "Let's turn this over to our Wolf Blitzer who will take a look at how the Senate is starting to shape up, as we continue to monitor all of these key races."

Wolf Blitzer: "Thanks Judy, with all of the projections in so far, the new Balance of Power in the Senate is starting to shape up. Of course, we had 35 Republican holdovers who are not up for re-election, and 31 Democratic holdovers who again, are not up for re-election. 33 Seats are up for election tonight, of course. Before we look at the Senate breakdown, we have even more seats to call that are fresh in."

Blizter: "In Texas, Kay Bailey Hutchison has easily won reelection. In Pennsylvania, Rick Santorum has defeated his challenger Ron Klink with ease. In the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, we are surprised to report that we cannot, at this time, call the race between longtime Senator Edward Kennedy and Republican Jack Robinson, this one is a real surprise of the night here, Kennedy was easily the favourite to win this election. In Tennessee, an upset, Bill Frist, Doctor Bill Frist, has been defeated by Jeff Clark. In Maryland, Senator Paul Sarbanes, the long term incumbent, has defeated Paul Rappaport in another easy race. Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott of Mississippi has been easily reelected there, and in Maine, Republican, Moderate Republican, Olympia Snowe has also won reelection there. For those who are not keeping track, we have had nine Republicans elected, and six Democrats elected, bringing the Senate to 44 Republicans, 37 Democrats, with 19 seats still uncalled. Stuart Rothenburg, uh, there are a lot of changes here in the U.S. Senate!"

Stuart Rothenburg: "Look let's talk about the biggest thing of the night, Ted Kennedy, the President's brother, is in a close election. This cannot be understated at how seismic this is, if this is what out exit polls are saying about this race. Let's also look at Delaware, Roth was a very respected member of the Senate, and there was talk that his age would have lost him the election and was asked to step aside to let someone else run, but he refused, and now he doesn't have a seat anymore. Tennessee as well, Al Gore must be really happy with this, this bodes well for his chances in the state...

8:30 PM Eastern Time

Tom Brokaw: "It's time for some more calls here during this election. Polls have closed in Arkansas, and we can project that Vice-President Al Gore has won in Arkansas, we believe to no small part to President Clinton. Governor Bush was believed to have been able to win this state, but tonight, this isn't so. We also have some Senate races in."

Tim Russert: "In Massachusetts, after some time of vote counting, we can now say that Senator Ted Kennedy has been reelected, but with believe it will only be by a small margin, this is more of an upset than anyone would have thought, it was unthinkable for Kennedy to lose. In New Jersey, that open seat has been won by Bob Franks, defeating the financially powerful Jon Corzine. Governor Bush had campaigned here in New Jersey, and it's still undecided on the national level, so this might be an indication of how the state is leaning, and also-"

Brokaw: I'm sorry to break in but we have a breaking new projection in. CBS News can now project that Vice-President Gore has won in the state of Tennessee. This is another victory for the Gore camp, and it will certainly be disheartening for Governor Bush. As we take a look at the map, we can see the states that are still too close to call. 101 Electoral votes in these states, and they are Maine, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Ohio, Michigan, and Missouri. Vice-President Gore currently has 107 electoral votes, and Governor Bush has 84..."



9:00 PM Eastern Time

Rather: "It's the top of the hour, and there's a large slew of new polls that have been closed, and we have many new projections. In New York, we can project Vice-President Gore has won the state. In Louisiana, we project that Governor Bush has won the state. Minnesota, we project has gone to the Vice-President. In Nebraska, we project that Governor Bush has won the state. South Dakota, we are reporting that Governor Bush has won this state as well. Wisconsin is in and too close to call. In Arizona, we project that Governor Bush has won, as well as in the state of Colorado. Wyoming has gone to Governor Bush. In New Mexico, the race is too close to call. Kansas has gone for Governor Bush. Here's an important one too, Wisconsin. Wisconsin is still too close to call at this time..."

9:48 PM Eastern Time

Brokaw: "We interrupt to bring three new projections. Missouri, a bell-weather state, voting for the victor in every election in the 20th century, has voted for Vice-President Gore. West Virginia, a state that voted for Clinton by fifteen points, has gone for the Vice-President. In Ohio, Governor Bush has taken the state, good news for him to try and keep his Presidential aspirations afloat."

Russet: "On the Senate side of this election, First Lady Hillary Clinton has been defeated in her bid to become New York's next Senator, with Republican Rick Lazio taking the seat in a close election. Lincoln Chafee has also won the seat in Rhode Island..."

9:58 PM Eastern Time

Blitzer: "Just a few minutes before a few new states close, we have to revise one of our calls. The State of North Carolina, which has been projected for Governor Bush, now moves into the too close to call. We had called this state earlier due to our exit polls, but with so much of the vote in and Vice-President Gore still holding a lead, we cannot call this state clearly for Bush at this time. In better news for the Governor, CNN can project that he has won in the State of New Jersey..."

10:18 PM Eastern Time

Rather: "We've just had more states closed, and we can go for another round of projections. Starting in the west, we can say that North Dakota goes for Governor Bush. In Idaho, Governor Bush has won here as well. Montana has gone for Governor Bush. Nevada is too close to call, just like Iowa, which is too close to call. In Utah, Governor Bush has won here as well. In yet another string of good news, Governor Bush has won the state of New Hampshire. The State of Maine has gone for Governor Bush, maybe owing to his father's owning a home there, but we can confirm that the Governor has taken the entire state..."



10:35 PM Eastern Time

Woodruff: "Now that more votes are in, we are confident in making new projections here tonight. We have two projections out of the Mid-West. The first and most important is that CNN can project that Governor Bush has won the state of Michigan, beating Vice-President Gore. Second, we can project that Mike DeWine has won reelection to the United States Senate in Ohio. In the South, Vice-President Gore has surprised many with his strength here, and has won the State of North Carolina. There are still five states that are too close to call, Nevada, New Mexico, Iowa, Wisconsin, and Pennsylvania."

Shaw: "What we are seeing here is a complete mix match. Democratic states, Republican states, they don't seem to matter that much. This is reflected in the Senate races as well as the national vote. The races being so close in the midwest is just phenomenal, as well as Gore's strength in the South, this wasn't reflected in the polls all that well."

Schneider: "Now the election is really starting to come down to the few states that are still outstanding. Vice-President Gore is expected to win California, that pushes him to 234. That's just 36 away from winning the election, if you give him Hawaii's votes as well, he get's to 238. Governor Bush is expected to win Alaska, and he would need to win at least Pennsylvania to have a shot, and if not, take a clean sweep of the other states still outstanding..."

11:00 PM Eastern Time

Brokaw: "The polls have closed in the West, and we can now project that the State of California's 54 electoral votes are won by Vice-President Gore. Hawaii has been won by Vice-President Gore as well. We can also report at this time that Vice-President Gore has won the state of Pennsylvania as well."

Russet: "Well, the feeling down in Texas has got to be very dismal right now. Pennsylvania meant that the Governor had a chance to win without having to make a near clean sweep of the remaining states. Let's look at those that remain. If the Vice-President wins either Washington or Wisconsin, he is the President-elect. He has 261 votes right now, so right away both of those are in Bush's 'need to win' column. Furthermore, he can only afford to lose one of the other states still outstanding. The math is getting really bad for him..."

11:30 PM Eastern Time

Woodruff: "Here in Atlanta we are able to make a crucial projection. CNN can now project that Vice-President Al Gore has won the State of Iowa. He is just two electoral votes away from being elected our next President, any one state would make him the winner..."

12:06 AM Eastern Time

Rather: "This has been a long night, and it seems it will get even longer. We can no project two states. In Washington, judging by Ralph Nader's strong showing, Governor Bush has won in that state. In Nevada, Governor Bush has won that state..."

12:38 AM Eastern Time

Brokaw: "What we are seeing tonight is an extraordinary election. We can now make our own projection in Wisconsin, with Governor Bush carrying that state..."

1:05 AM Eastern Time

Brokaw: "This just in, we can now give a projection for Oregon, saying that when all the votes have been counted, we are certain that Governor Bush will win the state..."



1:43 AM Eastern Time

Blitzer: "While we are still waiting on the results from New Mexico, where the votes are separated by an unprecedented twelve votes, we will update those still watching on the state of the Senate and the House around the country. The Balance of Power in the Senate is more or less settled, since we last updated you hours ago, I'll breakdown the most recently called races, with only one still undecided, in Missouri. In Wisconsin, John Gillespie has won over Herb Kohl. In Minnesota, Rod Grams has thwarted a strong attempt at his seat, winning reelection by a half a percent. Jon Kyl won in Arizona, Dianne Feinstein has won a landslide in California, Slade Gorton has won re-election in Washington as well. Bob Kerrey has held on in Nebraska, as well as Kent Conrad in North Dakota. Brian Schweitzer has won in Montana, making it one of the few Democratic pickups of the night. Jeff Bingaman won in New Mexico. John Ensign picked up that open seat in Nevada, while Orrin Hatch won again in Utah. The final state we know is Wyoming, where Craig Thomas has been sent back to the Senate as well."

Blizter: "What we can know, is that the Republicans have kept control of the United States Senate, and have expanded their majority. Democrats have picked up two seats, and Republicans have picked up five seats. The Senate control will look like this, 55 Republican, 44 Democrat, with 1 still undecided."

Blitzer: "Let's take a look at the house. We can be sure that the Republicans have won a majority in the House, and have increased their majority. Whoever is elected President, they will have a Republican congress to deal with, showing that the American people don't hold any ill will towards the Congressional Republicans, who had been impugned the entire election over the impeachment of Bill Clinton..."

2:23 AM Eastern Time

Woodruff: "While we are waiting on New Mexico, I can show you the numbers here, with 83% of the precincts reporting nationally, Governor Bush has a sizable lead over the Vice-President in the popular vote. Governor Bush has 43,069,501 votes to the Vice-President's 40,985,501 votes. This gives Governor Bush 49% of the vote, and the Vice-President 47% of the vote..."

3:03 AM Eastern Time

Brokaw: "We have breaking news now, we go to the all important state of New Mexico, where it can now be projected that Vice-President Al Gore has won the state. With that, he reaches 273 electoral votes, and is the President-Elect of the United States of America. he has defeated Texas Governor George Bush in one of the tightest elections in American history, one that has kept us all on a knife's edge throughout the night. We now go live to the Gore headquarters, where they are clearly jubilant at this new call..."





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