Bush, who spoke two hours after the Florida certification late last night, called on his Democratic opponent, Al Gore, to end his legal challenges to the outcome in Florida and the November 7 election.
``The election was close but tonight after a count, a recount and yet another manual recount, Secretary (Dick) Cheney and I are honored and humbled to have won the state of Florida, which gives us the needed electoral votes to win the election,`` the Texas governor said, speaking from the state capitol building.
``We will therefore undertake the responsibility of preparing to serve as America`s next president and vice president.``
Bush said that he was naming Cheney, his vice presidential running mate, as head of his transition team and Andrew card as his chief of staff.
Whereas, Democrat Al Gore, refusing to call it quits, plans to address the nation at 2230 hrs (IST) on Monday to make his case for ``a full and fair accounting of the vote`` in Florida that he believes would make him the 43rd President of the United States, a senior aide said. ``It is important for the integrity of our democracy to make sure that every vote is counted,`` gore said in an interview with the New York Times on Sunday night that was published on the newspaper`s web site.

Bureau Report