HE MESS IN FLORIDA will not provoke a constitutional crisis if the voters can trust that the recount is fair. But to be fair, the count must be thorough and apolitical, and so far it has not been a shining example of either.
The slim lead Governor George W. Bush held over Vice President Al Gore had dwindled by last evening, but counts are still unofficial, and absentee ballots from voters overseas are yet to be counted. The public, and especially the politicians, should take a deep breath and let the election laws - and lawsuits - play out.
Simply rolling the ballots through a computer a second time, however, will not correct voting irregularities that occurred through partial impressions on punch cards; only a supervised hand count can catch those. Such a method ought to be employed in Florida.
In 1996 in this state's 10th Congressional District, candidates William Delahunt and Philip Johnston endured a recount that checked hundreds of partially perforated ballots by hand, reversing the original outcome of the primary to give the nomination to Delahunt. Johnston appealed, but the decision was confirmed by the Supreme Judicial Court. The whole agonizing process took several weeks, but it was worth it to increase public confidence in the outcome.
Even a hand count would do nothing for the ballots in Palm Beach County that were apparently punched twice by confused or frustrated voters who were either trying to correct a mistaken vote for Patrick Buchanan or operating on the misguided impression that two punch holes were required - one for Gore and one for his vice president. The ballot may have been poorly designed, but it was approved by both Democratic and Republican party officials long before Election Day. Unless a judge rules that the ballot design violates Florida law, those votes will have to remain invalid.
It may be inevitable that Bush and Gore operatives are still in campaign mode, but nothing is helped by sniping and spinning. Former Secretary of State James Baker's dismissive comment that two lawsuits filed yesterday were the result of too many lawyers is a disservice to the franchise. This not a frivolous ''slip-and-fall'' case.
Some have called for taking the vote all over again in the disputed precincts. This should be a last resort, because it is impossible to replicate a moment that is past. There can be no guarantee, even with sworn affidavits, that voters will cast their second ballots as they meant to on Nov. 5. It would take a strong Ralph Nader partisan indeed, for example, not to be tempted to switch to Gore, knowing what hangs in the balance.
Sitting with uncertainty is excruciating, and everyone wants closure on Election 2000. But it is better to be right than to be fast.
