Famous Florida votes will be saved

Handful of votes decided Florida

The US state of Florida has decided to keep millions of ballots cast during the disputed 2000 presidential election "for their historical value".

The disputed Florida vote decided the election, with President Bush finally claiming victory by just 537 votes.

Preservation of the ballot papers was welcomed by attorney Gary Farmer, who was part of the legal team for the defeated Democrat candidate Al Gore.

He said the ballots should be preserved as they might play a role in future election reforms.

"Nobody wants to see another Florida 2000," he said.

Since the election the millions of ballots have sat gathering dust in warehouses all over Florida.

In Palm Beach County, scene of the most bitter arguments during the election, thousands of ballots lie stacked on wooden pallets two metres high.

Supervisors normally would have destroyed them by now because they take up so much space.

But not everyone sees the value of preserving them.

Attorney Barry Richard, who represented President Bush during the recount drama in Florida, said the famous ballots probably have decades of anonymity ahead.

"Around 100 years from now, somebody will say, 'What are these boxes for?" said Mr Richard.

"Probably nobody will look at them between now and then. They're not much to look at."