Washington - US opinion is divided over how best to resolve the US presidential election standoff, according to two polls released yesterday. Just over half of those interviewed, 53 per cent, think that manual recounts of disputed ballots should continue in Florida, while 43 per cent think the Supreme Court was right to stop them, according to a poll by the Washington Post and ABC. A USA Today/CNN/Gallup poll shows a similar rift, with 49 per cent of respondents against the recounts, and 47 per cent in favour.
In the Post/ABC 66 per cent of those polled said they were confident the US high court would be fair to both sides.
According to the CNN/USA Today/Gallup poll, 76 per cent said the high court would ultimately rule in Mr Bush's favour, while 61 per cent said the federal high court was best equipped to handle the situation.
Only 17 per cent said the same of the US Congress, while just 9 per cent had such confidence in the Florida Supreme Court and 7 per cent in the Florida state legislature.
At the same time, the Florida justices who allowed the recounts to continue appeared to have incurred popular wrath. The Post/ABC News survey showed 62 per cent of Americans disapprove of the way the Florida Supreme Court has handled the election disputed. The Post poll surveyed 605 adults, and the Gallup poll surveyed 735. Both had a 4 per cent margin of error.