21.   George W. Bush called his brother about an hour after the Florida polls had closed.

22.   He declined to comment on what action VNS has taken to discourage Web sites from publishing the information before the polls close.

23.   He waited until after the polls had closed in California before offering his congratulations to Bush.

24.   However the news agencies have agreed not make projections for any state until the polls have closed in that state.

25.   In reality, the last speck of suspense was extinguished when the polls closed last week in Georgia.

26.   It began early on that long-ago Election Night, when the networks called Florida for Gore before the polls had closed in parts of the state.

27.   --It will not project a winner in a state until all polls have closed in that state.

28.   Just before the polls closed Tuesday night, all four Democrats held an unusual joint news conference to pledge support for whoever won.

29.   Opponents of the measure sued almost as soon as the polls closed, and it has been tied up in court ever since.

30.   Several African-American politicians said they knew of instances where black voters who were waiting in line to vote were turned away when the polls closed.