The U.S. presidential election is less than two weeks away. With both candidates running neck and neck, the election is still too close to call. Poll watchers worry that the victor will not be known even after the polls close: dysfunctional voting machinery and legal challenges may hold up results for weeks. This year's race has lived up to its promise as one of the most intensely fought -- and dirty -- campaigns in U.S. history. Expect more of the same as the ballot nears.
Democratic challenger Sen. John Kerry used the three presidential debates to close the gap between himself and President George W. Bush and make the campaign a real race again. Most opinion polls place the two men in a virtual tie; when one is ahead of the other, it is usually within the poll's margin of error, meaning that the lead is statistically meaningless.
The closeness of the race is no surprise. The United States is deeply divided between "red" and "blue" states, with only 5 to 10 percent of the electorate undecided. The real battle is for those undecided voters, and both campaigns have pulled out all the stops to win them over. That in part explains the descent into negativism in the campaign, the mud that has been thrown and the dirty tricks that have been exposed.