I've stated previously on several occasions that I think Al Gore will be the next President of the United States. Of course the first time was in the midst of the whole "I'm-Bill- Clinton-have-a-cigar" saga, and though some might think it unfair to count an "Al Gore is the next Big Cheese" guess in the context of impeachment proceedings, I think it's only right to say that I missed on that one. (Though I continue to believe Clinton's impeachment should have been sustained, and the lying [insert word or phrase of your choice here] thrown out of office.)

I was also wrong in saying, after the first Bush v. Gore presidential debate, that Al Gore was the next president on the basis of that night's performance. I still think Gore dominated a frequently comically inept Bush. It's just that competence isn't necessarily the voting issue I think it should be. I'll refrain from telling you what this makes me think of the electorate.

But it won't stop me from going for strike three in my efforts to predict the next president. It only takes one good swing to hit a home run, and if predicting the outcome of all 50 states plus DC isn't a potential four-bagger, I don't know what is.

Note: I'm reserving the right to change my mind on states right up until Election Day, so expect to see me waffle a bit as polls indicate the fickle "Undecideds" have gone and changed their minds again.

Tune in again on Election Night as I'll be updating the site with returns and tracking my success. Do bear in mind that I don't think I have a snow ball's chance in hell of picking correctly on a lot of the toss-up states; this is all just for giggles in case that's unclear.

Final Update / 10:54 AM PST

State	Votes	Ty's Pick	Outcome	Notes
Alabama	9	Bush	Bush	Bush by, oh, say 20
Alaska	3	Bush	Bush	Bush is Big Oil's best friend; Big Oil rules Alaska
Arizona	8	Bush	Bush	Traditionally Republican but a little tighter than normal this time around because McCain is favorite son and Bush is, well, Bush
Arkansas	6	Bush	Bush	Clinton's campaigned here for Gore and though I've been burned by betting against Bill before, I'm willing to do it again
California	54	Gore	Gore	Been solidly Gore for a long time; recent campaigning by Bush a strategic mistake
Colorado	8	Bush	Bush	Latest shows Bush by 9; probably means a Republican kegger at the Coors plant
Connecticut	8	Gore	Gore	Solidly in Gore's camp
Delaware	3	Bush	Gore	Bush by 4, right at the margin of error; I wouldn't put money on this one
DC	3	Gore	Gore	Satan himself could head the Democratic ticket & still outpoll his Republican challenger in DC
Florida	25	Gore	Bush	Gore has led in every poll of the past 2 months; latest Zogby 11/3-5 (+/-4) has Gore by 4
Georgia	13	Bush	Bush	Bush wins the South; up 16 in latest poll
Hawaii	4	Gore	Gore	Gore's got virtually a 2-to-1 edge in the Islands
Idaho	4	Bush	Bush	Spud state almost 2-to-1 for Bush
Illinois	22	Gore	Gore	A little tighter than Demos would prefer, but Gore will carry the state anyway
Indiana	12	Bush	Bush	Hoosier state never prized intellect as a necessary political quality; Sen. Quayle is proof
Iowa	7	Bush	Gore	Bush by 3 in 11/2 poll by PSI
Kansas	6	Bush	Bush	Almost 2-to-1 for Bush
Kentucky	8	Bush	Bush	Bush 51 to 41 in latest poll
Louisiana	9	Bush	Bush	Bush by 7 to 11 points
Maine	4	Gore/Bush	Gore 3, Bush 1	Very tight; Maine 1 of 2 states that split electoral votes; I'm guessing 2 votes each
Maryland	10	Gore	Gore	Not even close
Massachusettes	12	Gore	Gore	Long a Democratic stronghold, Gore will have no problems here
Michigan	18	Gore	Gore	Was tight; Gore lead now above margin of error
Minnesota	10	Gore	Gore	Traditionally carried by Demos, but Nader potentially a factor; Nader support dropping, Gore moving ahead
Mississippi	7	Bush	Bush	Bush by 11
Missouri	11	Bush	Bush	Bush 49-45 in latest Zogby poll; it'll be a close one
Montana	3	Bush	Bush	Free Men unite! Bush by 11
Nebraska	5	Bush	Bush	Cornhuskers are Republicans apparently; Bush by 21; Nebraska splits electoral votes; I'm guessing 1 vote to Gore
Nevada	4	Bush	Bush	Bush by 4 in latest poll, and I'd wager that's about right
New Hampshire	4	Gore	Bush	Gore by 3 or 4 points
New Jersey	15	Gore	Gore	Depending on who's poll you read, Gore by 6 or Gore by 14; Either way it's Gore
New Mexico	5	Gore	Gore	42-42 in NMSU poll of 9/26-28 (+/-4) & 45-45 in NMSU poll of 11/6 (+/-4); a roll of the dice
New York	33	Gore	Gore	Battle for NY over long ago; only question concerns Clinton-Lazio senate race
North Carolina	14	Bush	Bush	Bush by 10
North Dakota	3	Bush	Bush	The Dakotas heavily pro-Bush
Ohio	21	Bush	Bush	Bush leads in all of latest 8 polls; expect about a 4 point win here
Oklahoma	8	Bush	Bush	Bush by 10 or 11
Oregon	7	Bush	Gore	If Nader polls 10 percent Gore goes down in flames; recent Nader slippage has evened things up; it'll be down to the wire
Pennsylvania	23	Gore	Gore	Gore polls ahead of Bush in last 6 polls; latest Zogby 10/28-29 (+/-4.5) has 46-43 Gore
Rhode Island	4	Gore	Gore	Overwhelmingly pro-Gore; unfortunately only 4 electoral college votes
South Carolina	8	Bush	Bush	Bush plays well in the South, here by 52-39 in the lastest polling
South Dakota	3	Bush	Bush	The Dakotas heavily pro-Bush
Tennesee	11	Bush	Bush	Gore will be the first presidential contender to lose his home state since McGovern
Texas	32	Bush	Bush	Bush will have no such problems
Utah	5	Bush	Bush	Mormons tend to be Republicans
Vermont	3	Gore	Gore	Strongly pro-Gore
Virginia	13	Bush	Bush	Bush by 7
Washington	11	Gore	Gore	Latest Zogby shows it a deadheat, but everything prior shows a small to moderate edge for Gore
West Virginia	5	Bush	Bush	Depending on the polling organization WV is either strongly pro-Bush or a horse race; I think the former
Wisconsin	11	Gore	Gore	A contested state, but with the exception of 1 Harris poll mid-October, everything comes up Gore
Wyoming	3	Bush	Bush	Cowboy vote carries cowpoke to victory
	Ty	Election		Ty's Misses
Total Bush =	261	271		Delaware (3), New Hampshire (4), Iowa (7), Oregon (7), Florida (25)
Total Gore =	280	267