Nearly three-quarters approve of Gore’s decision to concede the presidential race to George W. Bush, better than 20 points more than the number who approve of the U.S. Supreme Court decision that forced Gore’s hand. More than a third see political motivations behind the majority’s ruling.
     For the first time since the vote-count controversy erupted, most Americans now say the issue reveals “serious problems” in the way this country elects the president — up 23 points in the last month. As to a solution, six in 10 say the federal government should establish uniform nationwide voting rules, rather than leaving these to states and counties.

Bush and the Breach
Bush, for his part, could help heal the breach by appointing Democrats to his cabinet. An overwhelming 86 percent of Americans say he should do so, including 82 percent of Republicans. Bush meets Friday with Sen. John Breaux, D-Louisiana, who’s reportedly under consideration for energy secretary.
     More broadly, 95 percent of Americans say Bush should mainly seek compromise between Democrats and Republicans in Congress, rather than mainly working within his own party to implement his policies — a nearly unanimous call for bipartisanship after the divisive 2000 campaign.

The Outcome
Many of the divisions the election revealed remain firmly in place. Americans divide about evenly between satisfaction and dissatisfaction with the outcome, 50-49 percent. Naturally, Bush’s supporters are overwhelmingly satisfied; Gore’s are not.
     But passions are not riding all that high. Twelve percent of Americans are “angry” about the outcome; 14 percent, across the emotional spectrum, are “enthusiastic.” Well over twice as many are in the calmer middle — simply “satisfied” or “dissatisfied.”
     Even among Gore’s supporters, just 21 percent are angry. (Among Bush’s, 33 percent are enthusiastic about the outcome.)
     Fifty percent approve of the Supreme Court’s decision while 47 percent disapprove — essentially an even split. Not surprisingly, there’s more partisanship here: Among Bush’s supporters, 90 percent approve of the ruling; among Gore’s, 82 percent disapprove.
     Indeed, 63 percent of Gore’s supporters believe the court’s majority ruled in Bush’s favor on the basis of partisanship — “because it wanted to help Bush become president,” not “on the law and evidence.” Hardly any of Bush’s supporters agree.
     There’s less partisanship on the other side of the equation — why the court’s minority ruled for Gore. Around three in 10 Bush and Gore supporters alike think it was mainly to help Gore; most on both sides think it was on the law. The reason could be simple: It’s easier to be magnanimous in victory than in defeat.
     The high court’s involvement in the controversy didn’t crush public confidence in the institution, but it certainly didn’t help. Twenty-nine percent of Americans say they have a lower opinion of the court as a result of its ruling, about three times the number — 10 percent — who think more highly of it. Nonetheless, nearly six in 10 say their view of the court hasn’t changed.
     Views of whether the election dispute reveals “serious problems” with the nation’s election system depend in part, naturally, on which candidate you supported. Among Gore’s supporters, 71 percent see serious problems; among Bush’s just 35 percent agree.
     Nonetheless, majorities in both groups favor standard, federally mandated voting rules in future presidential elections — 53 percent of Bush’s supporters support that suggestion, as do 69 percent of Gore’s. With the shouting now over, election reform is one place where most people on both sides have found room to agree.
    

Methodology
This ABC News/Washington Post poll was conducted by telephone Dec. 14, 2000, among a random national sample of 603 adults. The results have a four-point error margin. Field work by TNS Intersearch of Horsham, Pa.

Previous ABCNEWS polls can be found in our Poll Vault.