corrente

If you're reality-based, that is:

Unofficially Bush wins Ohio, but voters won't know the official count for a few weeks.

At 1 a.m., Ohio Republicans declared victory. Hours later, it wasn't a clear cut victory and it still isn't.

There are still 135,149 provisional ballots that haven't yet been counted, but that number will grow. It will grow because 10 Ohio counties still haven't added up the number of provisional ballots they have.

Those numbers will be known by 2 p.m. Wednesday.

Take the number of known provisional ballots, add in the unknown absentee ballots and you're close or over the margin between Bush and Kerry in Ohio, which is just over 136,000 votes in Bush's favor.

Statistically, it would be tough for Kerry to win on the provisional ballots in Ohio. Last election, about 10 percent of all the provisional ballots were thrown out. If that holds true again, Kerry would have to win nearly every single provisional vote that was valid.

It is a tough, if not impossible feat.

Despite his concession, the official Ohio count will begin Thursday and continue the next few weeks.
(via WBNS, Columbus)

I guess I don't see what the trauma is in waiting to count all the votes.

WTF, an "unofficial" win? What is this, a banana Republic?