Election 2000: Florida Counties Wait to See What's Next
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Now that the hand recount process in Florida has come to a standstill again, dozens of counties are waiting for what comes next. CNN's Mark Potter has more from one of those counties in limbo.</s>MARK POTTER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Near Tampa, at the Hillsborough County elections center, workers were almost done culling out more than 5,500 under vote ballots from all the rest and county staffers representing both the Republican and Democratic Parties were getting their last instructions on how to begin the manual count.</s>PAM IORIO, COUNTY ELECTIONS SUPERVISOR: If you said a dimple or an indentation and you feel uncomfortable, you want the canvassing board to look at that. The canvassing board will look at that.</s>POTTER: But then news broke of a stay by the U.S. Supreme Court and everything here stopped.</s>IORIO: Well, we've got another plan. Plan B, forget the chads.</s>POTTER: Out in the hall, George W. Bush supporters broke into celebration. County officials said they would finish separating the under votes from the 319,000 ballot total.</s>JUDGE JAMES DOMINGUES, HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY CANVASSING BOARD: Should at some point the Supreme Court say resume the count, we will then be in a position where all of the ballots have been segregated and we can begin the actual counting procedure.</s>POTTER: It didn't take long to finish the process and close up shop. (on camera): Now that the Supreme Court has issued its stay, the ballots have been resealed and are secured in the elections office as officials await guidance on what, if anything, to do next. Mark Potter, CNN, Hillsborough County, Florida.