I would argue for the spirit of New Mexico where, under state law, ties are settled by games of chance. This is an utterly brilliant solution, possible only in a confident democracy that knows (a) we need somebody to hold these offices, (b) these offices' powers are limited anyway, and (c) there will be another election a few years down the road, where the people will have a chance to make a clearer expression of their abiding will. Of course we cannot roll dice for the presidency, but we can step back from the mind-set that we are engaged in a holy war for electoral legitimacy.
Assuming overseas absentee votes swing Bush's way, Gov. Bush will most likely be duly certified as the victor, and the Gore camp will be in the uncomfortable position of trying to overturn the normal process and win victory by lawsuit.
Al Gore may yet steal this election, through novel legal strategies designed to increase the votes counted in only Democratic precincts. But even if that happens, Republicans should take a deep breath and remember that he has that chance only because both Gore and Bush are within a hairsbreadth of each other in Florida and elsewhere. The republic can survive four years of Gore. We may not survive a political climate in which both parties are engaged in total war without rules, civility and decency.