Election 2000: Woman on the Verge of Certifying

Katherine Harris, be she hero or villain, is the perfect example of Florida's personal politics

Six years ago, Katherine Harris was an obscure Sarasota, Fla., socialite, a Harvard-educated heiress juggling a real estate job, arts charities and a short-lived nightclub gig doing the chicken dance and exhorting the audience to join in. She was also, say friends, bored silly.

How the world has changed.

Depending on who was speaking last week, Florida's secretary of state is either a hero or a villain of the Sunshine State's postelection madness--ready to bring an end to our long national nightmare or to abrogate the God-given rights of the American voter. Florida's senate minority leader, Buddy Dyer, a Democrat,...

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