D.B.W I. President George W Bush

[mcnutt]

What of Puerto Rico had not voted for statehood in 1993? Puerto Rico's seven electoral votes provided President Gore with his winning margin in the election of 2000. If Puerto Rico did not become a state, then the House of Representatives would not have been enlarged to 440, to accommodate Puerto Rico' five representatives. The Senate would have still had 100 members not 102. So the Electoral College would still have had 538 members. 270 would have still been the winning number not 273. So George W Bush would have won with 271 electoral vote's to Gore's 267. The litigation inspired by the Florida recount would have determined the election. The Supreme Court stopped the recount will Bush was ahead, giving him Florida's 25 electoral votes. OTL that reduced President Gore's winning margin from 299 to 274. ITTL five unelected conservative justices would have put Bush in the White House. While as Governor, Bush had a record of working across party lines. ITTL he like John Quincy Adams and Rutherford B Hayes would have had an opposition angry at being robbed. Gore would have been considered the legitimate president by most Democratic activists. That would make him a shoe in for the nomination in 2004. Who would have won the rematch of 2004?

[orvillethird]

Well, Gore wound up getting thrown out of office by the Republicans (The campaign finance scandals didn't help him). Then again, Bush had numerous scandals, like his perjury in the Eliza May case.

[Epic History]

Sept 16, 2016 14:27:36 GMT orvillethird said:

Well, Gore wound up getting thrown out of office by the Republicans (The campaign finance scandals didn't help him). Then again, Bush had numerous scandals, like his perjury in the Eliza May case.

Pretty much agree with this to an extent. Although I wonder what the lack of the election of Alveda King in 2004 would do the Republicans and the nation at large. After all, the Party of Lincoln electing the first Black and Woman President (And a niece of MLK no less!) was a pretty seminal event in recent US history. I know scholarship on the issue now view it as a realignment election, what with the new coalitions it helped to form (GOP getting a third of the Black vote, working class whites, etc...).