Texas Governor Returns Home to Await Results

AUSTIN, Texas--The governor of Texas will await the network projections today--the final word--sequestered in a room at the Four Seasons Hotel here with top aides and family.

At some point very late tonight or even early Wednesday, George W. Bush will walk to the steps of state capitol building.

There, he will either give an acceptance speech or concede the election to Vice President Al Gore '69.

Workers spent yesterday building a stage, carpeting the floor in bright red, testing the lights and microphones and the equipment for music performers.

The city was congested with members of the media yesterday. Satellite trucks lined the streets in front of the capitol and governor's mansion, blocking off streets to traffic.

Because Bush has held a sizable lead in his home state throughout the campaign, the scene in Texas had been mostly quiet until yesterday's final preparations. Many voters have already made up their minds, with record 135,000 filing early ballots in Austin last week.

But preference doesn't always translate into confidence.

"I think it's still very uncertain," said Rachel Penticuff, a senior at the University of Texas at Austin (UT), who declined to say for whom she would vote. "People are talking about all the different scenarios that could happen."

Voters in Texas gave a wide variety of reasons for favoring Bush over Gore. Corresponding with what national polls show, many said that Bush is a more likable candidate who will change the tone in Washington.

Pushing a stroller that sported a Bush-Cheney bumper sticker on the capitol grounds, Ann J. Dolce said she thinks it unfortunate that politics have become divisive.

"I like his integrity and his ability to work with both parties," she said.

Others said that Bush is more honest and straightforward than Gore, and that they would feel more comfortable with him as their president.

"He and I have the same values," said Terry Steele, who has lived in the state for 15 years. "I'd be comfortable having dinner with him."

Austin resident Chris Boggs said that he favored Bush's economic plans over Gore.

"I like his government philosophy," Boggs said. "Less government and less taxes is what I believe in."

"Democrats seem to have more and more organizations to help different groups of people, and it just seems like more bureaucracy," said Elaine McCabe.

McCabe still connected Gore with the scandals of the Clinton administration. She said the recent uncovering of Bush's arrest for driving under the influence of alcohol 24 years ago shows the difference between the candidates.

"Bush was totally upfront and honest as soon as the arrest came out," McCabe said. "Clinton was unwilling to admit to what he did."

A few voters in Austin did say they supported Gore, saying he had a better grasp of the issues of the campaign.

"I think he has a better sense of the big picture," said Cindy Laviolette. "He seems to know more about the issues."

Austin resident Anne Connor said the decision to cast her vote will come down to the issue of abortion and which candidate will decide new members of the Supreme Court.

"All their other promises and programs can change with Congress, or how the economy is doing, but the Supreme Court is there to stay," Connor said.

On the UT campus yesterday, members of the Progressive Student Coalition and the University Democrats held a "Bash Bush" rally, providing an open microphone for students to voice their opinions about the Texas governor.

Students chided Bush on a number of issues, ranging from his environmental record to his position on abortion.

One group of students gathered at the event to protest his strict enforcement of the death penalty.

Each student wore all black with a label saying the name of one of the 146 inmates executed while Bush has been governor.

"I have yet to see the compassion in compassionate conservative," said UT junior Phillip Dupre, drawing strong applause from the crowd that had gathered.

While some students have been vocal in debating their opinions, others have been apathetic about the race in general, since Texas is not a battleground state.

"I think it's about half and half between who cares and who doesn't," said first-year student Teisha Devore.

"I think either way it will be all right," said Bush supporter Katherine Flowers, a graduate student at UT. "I was disappointed when [President Bill] Clinton won the last two elections, but it wasn't the end of the world."

Ralph Nader supporters at UT have tried to capitalize on student apathy, making a push for students supporting neither candidate to vote for Nader instead, so that the Green Party will reach the five percent needed to gain federal funding in the next election.

"His presence on college campuses is amazing," said Nader supporter Robert W. Libal, who handed out Nader flyers at yesterday's anti-Bush rally.

Although the majority of college students favored Gore and Nader, they seemed very unsure of what to expect in today's election nationally.

"I'm worried because we don't know what's going to happen," Dupre said after the rally. "It's just so close."

"The polls don't even have it figured out," said U.T. sophomore Robert W. Libal.

Despite the variation in the student population, most Bush supporters in Austin said they were confident that he would be able to pull out a victory nationally.

"I think that people will vote their conscience," Bush supporter Steele said. "It will come down to whoever people will be the most comfortable with as a person, and Bush will win."