Ohio avoids ‘next Florida’ tag as Kerry concedes

JOHN KERRY’S concession of the US presidential race to Republican incumbent George Bush yesterday eased concerns that Ohio would emerge as a bitter battleground and delay the election’s outcome for weeks, in a replay of 2000.

State officials said they must still evaluate and count more than 135,000 provisional ballots and an unknown number of absentee ballots cast in Tuesday’s election, where Ohio’s 20 electoral votes came to represent the decisive prize.

But Kerry’s decision to concede with Bush leading in Ohio by 136,483 votes means the counting can proceed without party lawyers fighting at every turn for their candidate’s advantage.