"The Election from Hell: A Retrospective on 2000 and the Reforms That Need to Happen"

America has never seen an election like the 2000 race. Not only did it take five weeks to decide who had won the White House; the ways we cast our votes, and the ways they were (and weren't) counted became both a bitter controversy and, for some, a national embarrassment. Florida was only one part of the story. Low turnouts, allegations of vote fraud and racial discrimination at the polls, concerns about the sources and role of money in the process, an electorate deeply divided along rural-urban lines, the seeming inability of either party to win a solid mandate, and the Supreme Court's decisions in Bush v. Gore all made it a campaign to remember -- or maybe, one to forget.

Many argue that after all of the controversy, the system worked and government goes on. But others suggest that major reforms are needed in the ways we nominate candidates, fund campaigns, and cast and count our ballots. Professor Larry J. Sabato of the University of Virginia -- one of America's best-known political analysts and commentators -- will address those issues in a lecture on Thursday, February 8, at 7:30 PM in the Ho Lecture Room (105 Lawrence Hall) at Colgate University. Whether your candidate won or lost, we all have a stake in an open, fair, and credible election process. Whether or not we have that now -- and what must be done, in the wake of the problems and distrust stirred up by the 2000 campaign -- will be the focus of a provocative discussion. The event is free and open to all, and a reception will follow.

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Click here for a list of books, articles, and websites relevant to this event that are available through the Colgate Libraries.