>>Personally, though, I am not sure what the fuss is about. This is how close elections work. We're not used to it in a presidential election, which is why it seems such big news, but in local elections this isn't so uncommon.
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>Absolutely. In fact, I heard yesterday that (Republican) Rep. Dick Zimmer of New Jersey has requested a recount of the race which he lost by 178 votes. This is normal and to be expected. Four years ago, the congressional race in my district had a similar close vote. The trailing candidate requested a recount and, in fact, in that count, the final margin was 84 votes. Recounts are a normal part of the election process.
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I don't think people are upset about the recount. It's that third recount and then the handcount, and the denial of military ballots that is upsetting. It smacks of third world country election engineering.