<P> On election night , it was unclear who had won , with the electoral votes of the state of Florida still undecided . The returns showed that Bush had won Florida by such a close margin that state law required a recount . A month - long series of legal battles led to the contentious , 5 -- 4 Supreme Court decision of Bush v. Gore , which ended the recount . With the end of the recount , Bush won Florida by a margin of . 009 % , or 537 votes . The Florida recount and subsequent litigation resulted in a major post-election controversy , and various individuals and organizations have speculated about who would have won the election in various scenarios . Ultimately , Bush won 271 electoral votes , one more than was necessary for the majority , and narrowly lost the popular vote to Gore . </P>
the 2000 presidential election was determined by the contested results of
the electoral votes of the state of Florida