BNA reports:

With the long 2004 campaign finally over, it still may take at least a few days or weeks after the Nov. 2 election to determine who the next president will be, 3 out of 4 experts predicted at an Oct. 29 panel discussion on potential legal issues regarding the presidential election.

If major litigation develops over which ballots to count--another widely envisioned scenario--it could take months to determine the outcome, raising the specter of the drawn out post-election battle of 2000. That view was shared by three experts at a National Press Club forum, including Paul DeGregorio, a commissioner of the new federal Election Assistance Administration; Doug Chapin of the nonprofit research organization electionline.org; and Ralph Neas, president of the liberal nonprofit advocacy group People for the American Way.

Republican election attorney Benjamin Ginsberg was the only member of the panel to disagree, predicting that the next president will be known on election night. Ginsberg said he expected Bush to open up a wide enough lead in the race in the few days left before the election to be the clear winner.

Based on a discussion I had this evening, I tend to agree with Ginsberg, except I believe this is breaking for a clear Kerry win. There may be some bickering at the state level, but the perfect storm in Florida 2000 may not occur in any state for 2004.