By: Erin Olson In E&P's exclusive tracking of electoral college estimates at seven top newspaper sites, only two shifted their numbers today, both giving additional votes to George W. Bush and taking them away from John Kerry.
The average count for the seven sites, deadlocked yesterday, now shifts to Bush by 198 electoral votes to 191, with both candidates far shy of the 270 needed for election.
The Los Angeles Times, which just yesterday gave New Jersey's 15 electoral votes to John Kerry, returned the state to its "up for grabs" status today, a terrifying prospect for the Democrats. It also moved Louisiana from the "swing" category into the Bush camp, giving Bush nine more votes. Kerry now leads at the L.A. Times by just 170-168.
USA Today also shifted slightly in favor of Bush, giving the president West Virginia's five electoral votes for a total of 221, a jump from his previous count of 216. The paper also took MIchigan out of Kerry's column and now calls it "closely contested." So Bush leads at USA Today by 221-213.
Five sites remain unchanged: The New York Times (225-213 for Kerry), The Philadelphia Inquirer/Knight Ridder (168-166 for Kerry), The Washington Post (208-179 for Bush), the South Florida Sun-Sentinel in Fort Lauderdale (222-217 for Bush), and The Boston Globe (192-188 for Bush).
All of the newspaper sites feature electoral maps, some of which are interactive. On the interactive maps, visitors can fool around with the results, if they wish. It's even possible to create a 269-269 electoral tie -- perish the thought.
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