Original subtitles

Previously on The West Wing...

Polls open in five,

four, three, two...

Final pass at the victory

and concession speeches.

It was either this or a solitaire tournament

with the Advance guys.

Have you seen this stuff about Leo?

Leo McGarry did not accept his party's nomination

for the vice presidency of the United States

because he thought it might make your socks roll up and down.

Come upstairs. We just got the first round of exit polls.

We're also losing in North Dakota,

a state that's gone Republican for the last 40 years.

And that doesn't give you a moment's pause?

Turnout is down 15 percent!

In Vermont?!

Josh... How can we be up in South Carolina

and not get people to the polls in Vermont?!

Leo?

Leo!

Somebody help me!

Yeah, of course, it's very gratifying to win Illinois.

That's Leo McGarry country.

Now he can leave that suitcase full of ballots

in his hotel room.

Yet, Texas is Santos country... could be facing a loss there.

Congressman Santos isn't running for the President of Texas.

He'd like to win every state, he's gunning for Guam, too.

But we've already won New York, New Jersey,

Pennsylvania, South Carolina, which...

Senator Vinick has won Florida, Arkansas, Kentucky, Mississippi

and Virginia.

And as for South Carolina, Matt Santos couldn't have made

more trips to the state if he lived there.

We feel great about California.

Polls are still open out west; the whole country's at stake.

We're very optimistic about Texas.

And we'll win the state of California.

Well, thank you, Jeff.

It's great talking to you, too.

Thanks, Josh.

And we're out.

Why the hell aren't we dominating Texas?

Like the wise man said,

Santos isn't running for President of Texas.

Think we have enough flags?

We still have to convince people we're not agitprop socialists?

I think that sometimes, and I work here.

Thank you, Barbara.

We're out.

Ohio? Not yet.

They called Tennessee for us, Indiana, West Virginia.

God bless the coal industry.

Wisconsin?

Leaning Santos.

Ohio... what the hell...

is going on in Ohio?!

You look terrible.

Makeup's really working then.

Minnesota's official.

And Bruce and Gene need a minute.

Who?

From the transition team.

Tell them we're gonna wait and see

if there's a transition first.

They said it was important.

Interrupt me after two minutes.

If a state is called?

Or make something up. Two minutes.

Bruce, Gene, how are you?

There are several polls

across the country that have just closed...

Polls that we're not calling yet.

These states... Michigan, Texas...

They just called Minnesota

for Santos.

Maine, Vermont, New Hampshire.

Talk to me about the duck-boot belt.

They're still too close to call.

That'd be something, huh?

Come on, Ohio, come on.

We have problems

with the victory speech.

Big problems.

What problems?

For starters, there's nothing about economic sacrifice.

Have you seen CBO's latest deficit projections?

Throw the old baseline right out the window. If we can't claim

a mandate for economic sacrifice...

A line in a speech

doesn't give us a mandate, there's no spinning it.

We ran the national security language

by Nancy McNally.

She agrees, we need

a strong reference to burden-sharing,

what with Kazakhstan out there ticking like a time bomb.

The Congressman mentioned burden-sharing

less than 15 times in the campaign.

You counted?

Campaign's over.

Someone's got to be thinking about the governing.

Do you have your changes written down?

No rope line, no press pool.

We're going in through the basement.

No one sees you till you give your speech tonight.

It's Bram.

I need the Congressman.

They called Minnesota for us.

Good news.

Bad news.

If you guys are trying to play good-cop bad-cop,

your routine needs some work.

We need to rewrite the victory speech.

The transition team

wants sacrifice and burden-sharing

instead of sunshine and light.

Josh...

They counted the references.

It's my own fault. If I hadn't...

Don't worry about it.

It's our first governing document.

The propeller-heads are just trying

to make their own jobs easier.

You want something to worry about,

worry about the next two hours.

Hey, what happened to you?

Two minutes.

120 seconds.

I was stuck in there with dull and duller,

counting beads on my imaginary abacus.

Ohio?

Texas... we won?

We lost?

We need a good lawyer? What?

Leo was unconscious in his room.

Annabeth found him.

He wasn't...

He wasn't breathing.

They're taking him to the hospital in an ambulance now.

C.J.

C.J.?

Is the President in his office?

He just got back. Should I get Will?

Nancy.

Yes, sir?

I thought I brought that Centcom report back from Air Force One.

See if it's in that pile of stuff I dumped on your desk.

I'll check, sir.

I have some serious issues with the force readiness report.

We'll need to get Hutchinson in here

in the morning to go over it.

Any word on Ohio or Texas?

No, sir.

I had to get out of Manchester.

Sitting around my daughter's house watching my son-in-law

take his much deserved electoral beating without being able

to utter a self-satisfied "whoop"

was a bit more than I could bear.

Nancy, anything?

Still searching, sir.

I probably left it on the plane.

Call Andrews for me, will you?

If the Republicans end up with a one-vote majority in Congress,

we can chalk it up to my eldest daughter's lousy taste in men

and her father's pathetic efforts to...

C.J., what is it?

Where is he? They're taking him to Methodist.

The ambulance should be there by now.

Where's Josh? He just left for the hospital.

Was Leo talking? We don't know.

Should we be going to the hospital?

No, no. Press doesn't have this yet.

Why not? Polls out west are open for another 90 minutes.

The longer that we... You want to try and keep this a secret

for an hour and a half?

A quarter of the country is still voting.

And I'm asking all four quarters to trust me to be their leader.

I am not hiding the health problems of my vice president.

May not be the best place to have this conversation.

Anything that highlights any uncertainty...

I am not having this conversation.

We're issuing a statement to the press now.

Congressman, this is still a campaign,

and there's only two kinds: the pitiless and the dead.

Every minute we stand here, votes are being cast.

Undecideds vote late in the day.

If they were looking for a reason to vote Vinick,

a press release from us could just punch their lottery ticket.

It's going to come out.

10 minutes, 15 minutes, the paramedics,

somebody at the hotel or the hospital's

gonna say something.

Maybe we get lucky and it takes an hour

for the press to confirm and get something on the air.

They're not gonna wait to confirm it.

They're gonna go with the rumor.

I know he's your friend. He's my friend, too.

But we can't be sentimental about this,

or we will have a Republican president,

who will gut education,

he will auction off Social Security

and cut taxes till we're bleeding red ink.

And when Leo wakes up, he will kick your ass

for letting that happen, you know he will.

Start working on a statement.

Get me to a phone.

I want to call the hospital.

All right.

They're calling Kansas, Louisiana,

Nebraska, Oklahoma,

North and South Dakota all for us.

Minnesota for Santos,

Wisconsin.

What about Ohio? Nothing yet.

Iowa?

Too close to call.

Texas? Nope.

What do we got left out west?

We'll take Idaho, Montana, Utah,

Wyoming, Alaska, probably Nevada.

Santos gets Hawaii

and Washington, uh...

Hey!

We're now prepared to call

the state of Ohio for Senator Arnold Vinick.

Yes!

Texas! Come on!

Come on, what do we know about Texas?!

Where is he?

Hey.

He died, Josh.

What's the count?

166, 179.

No Texas yet?

It's Bram.

North Dakota, South Dakota...

It's Josh.

Delaware, Montana, Wyoming... Any of those states would

be enough for Santos to tie...

at this moment in time.

It's Josh for the Congressman.

The battleground states that we have not been able

to project winners in... Texas...

Yeah?

Congressman Santos' home state.

Look at these numbers: 51% so far for Santos,

49% for Vinick.

Yeah, we don't know much yet.

I'm heading back out to Andrews in a couple minutes to fly down.

I think Mallory's already there for the election night.

I'll be sure.

Honey, can you hang on a second?

When?

Just a few minutes ago.

Donna just called me.

Thank you, C.J.

Mr. President.

Sweetheart, I'm sorry, I have some very bad news.

Let's recap where we stand

right after 9:30 here on the east coast.

If we look at the popular vote, real numbers,

with 14% of the votes now in, Arnold Vinick with 49%.

Senator, I've got Matt Santos on the phone.

Matthew Santos with 48%.

He want to concede already?

No, sir.

You'll want to take this call.

Matt?

270 needed to be elected president...

Well, thank you, Senator,

I... I'll pass that along to everyone here.

For those of you just tuning in

to our election night coverage, Yeah, I appreciate that. Thank you.

We bring you breaking news, and, some would say,

heartbreaking news, at this hour.

Once again, Leo McGarry has been pronounced dead

by Dr. Elliott M. Gross of the Texas Methodist Medical Center.

He was rushed to the hospital after a massive heart attack,

his second in as many years.

Vice Presidential candidate, White House counselor...

The Chicago native played a major role

in shaping every presidential election...

Some believed that McGarry

had considerably more weight and experience,

particularly in matters of foreign policy,

than the top of the ticket.

More than one Democratic operative might be saying,

with the loss of this party eminence and elder,

what now for the Santos campaign?

With McGarry's name still stamped on every ballot...

We need to put out some kind of statement quickly.

What are my options?

Well, you could put forward another name,

make it harder for Vinick to make an issue out of this,

or God forbid, contest a result he doesn't like.

Could he do that? We don't have a lot of precedent to guide us here.

You want me to pick another running mate

in the next five minutes?

Why not stop the elevator between floors,

I'll pick a whole Cabinet.

The polls don't close for 50 minutes

out west and it may take just few thousand votes

to decide this election.

We just can't put forward another name.

Article 3, Section 1 of the DNC charter

gives the power to name a replacement to the DNC.

You can recommend a name, but you'll have to make clear

the DNC gets to approve it.

I'm not naming a new running mate in the next five minutes.

Leo is on the ballot, if I win, he wins,

nothing we can do about that now.

So what happens next?

The Electoral College vote in December.

Most states electors are free to vote

for anyone for Vice President.

So I can ask them to vote for someone other than Leo?

Yes, but Vinick could claim you're circumventing the voters.

The alternative being...?

Wait until you take office in January

and nominate someone under the 25th Amendment.

Can we please...? Which might be more respectful

of Constitutional process. Vinick would not be able

to argue the public's not being represented,

and if congressional... Okay, guys, before we get

too deeply into Robert's Rules of Order,

may I remind you people are still voting,

we haven't won the damn election yet?

Now he's got to get down to that ballroom now

and reassure the voters out west.

We've got a draft statement? Speechwriters are working on it.

No adjectives, no frilly language...

I lost a friend here tonight, okay?

Leo's family?

His daughter, Mallory, was in the hotel.

She's headed to the hospital.

Is Josh still there?

Last I heard. LOU: You need him back?

I need Josh to be wherever he needs to be.

Get me that statement.

Thanks.

They called Ohio for Vinick.

Kansas, Louisiana, Nebraska, Oklahoma.

North and South Dakota.

We picked up Minnesota, Wisconsin.

Texas?

Not yet.

Polls are still open out west.

Congressman needs to make a statement,

calm nervous undecideds in California

and the Pacific Northw...

Lou's already on it.

He needs to make it now.

There's no... They know that.

Somebody needs to tell the President.

I called C.J.

Where's Mallory, she was here a couple seconds ago?

She just went to call her mom.

Wow.

How is the Congressman?

Have you talked to Lou or Bram?

Yeah, he's in shock, like the rest of us.

Shouldn't we get back to the hotel?

So, no Texas yet?

Come on, I'll drive.

They shouldn't have subjected him

to the stresses of a big race.

After his last heart attack, they practically wheeled him

from the O.R. straight to the nominating convention.

Santos needed him, he needed a guy with 200 years experience

to balance out those training wheels.

Santos still hasn't made a statement?

Nope.

Condolences, support for the family?

They're probably still trying to figure out what to say.

"Hey, sorry, thought he had

a few thousand more miles in him. Oops."

The polls close in California in 45 minutes

and we're still not as strong as we should be in the south.

Orange County, San Diego,

the San Fernando Valley.

You think I should make a statement? Undecideds all over California

are driving to the polls right now,

trying to figure out which lever to pull.

No doubt some Democrats, too,

wondering if Matt Santos is up to the job

without Leo McGarry behind him pulling the strings.

Santos hasn't made a statement 'cause he just lost

his rationale for having enough experience to run the country.

It's hard to reassure without your reassurance.

You're quiet all of a sudden.

Yeah.

If Santos wins the election, it's bait and switch,

false advertising.

He's got a full slate of tainted electors,

and I'm not so sure a Republican Congress

ratifies his election as President.

If we even get a Republican Congress.

You're suggesting I challenge a Santos win?

We can't let Matt Santos

take this country into mass confusion

and a tainted electoral process

while troops are air-dropping into Kazakhstan.

You want me to go out there and say

people shouldn't vote for Matt Santos

because Leo McGarry died?

We have to be very careful.

We could create a backlash for ourselves.

How about creating a conscience for ourselves?

I've known Leo for 20 years.

Can we please not use him as a step stool?

You think voters don't know

exactly what this means without our

jamming it down their throats?

Voters are doing some jamming of their own.

We're neck and neck in California,

and Texas is still too close to call.

If we don't want this to come down to absentee ballots,

we're going to need to do something, and do it now.

The question is how it might affect voters

on the west coast SANTOS: I know you did, Senator.

Where polls remain open. Well, I picked him

'cause he was the best man for the job.

Of course I knew that he'd had...

all seasoning and hard-earned Washington wisdom...

Well, I'll take that under advisement.

Thanks for the suggestion.

Senator Kaufer, selflessly offering himself

as a possible Vice President in the service of his country.

God bless America.

A dedicated and loyal servant

of the United State's government...

Am I going to hate this?

Probably.

♪ Believe it or not ♪

♪ Hands on a miracle ♪

♪ I got my hands on a miracle ♪

♪ And there ain't no way ♪

♪ Let you take it away ♪

♪ Aye-aye-aye-aye ♪

♪ Take it away ♪

♪ Aye-aye-aye-aye... ♪

Congressman Santos would like to make a statement at this time.

America has lost a giant tonight,

and I've lost a friend.

Leo McGarry dedicated his life to public service.

To the notion that every citizen is responsible

for making this country a better place.

That we have a sacred duty

to participate in our democracy.

To leave America stronger for the next generation.

If I win this election, the country will be worse off,

because Leo McGarry will not be there to help me run it.

But I don't want anyone to vote for or against me

because of Leo McGarry.

This race wasn't about him, and it isn't about me.

It's a vision for America

that will outlast Leo, and outlast me.

There's an America that's bigger than any of us.

And for those of you who have not yet voted,

it is the only thing that should matter

when you go to the polls tonight.

Thank you.

Once again, to remind our viewers,

the red states are Vinick states,

the blue states are Santos states.

Hi.

The rest, the white states,

are states that have closed their polls, but we don't have

enough information to predict a winner.

Polls just closed in the West.

Some people are asking...

All over but the counting. Texas is down to the wire.

California's looking like a photo finish.

Oregon and Nevada are both too close to call.

They just called Utah, Idaho, Montana and Wyoming

for Vinick.

We won Arizona?

And Washington State.

New Mexico. Basically a tie.

Omnes una manet nox.

What's that?

Old campaign saying of Leo's.

Same night awaits us all.

Where is the Congressman?

In his suite, calling House candidates.

Two more seats in California,

and we have a chance to take back the House.

We're projected to win at least four.

What about the Senate?

Senator McKenna lost Pennsylvania.

And Fuller lost Maine.

Republicans retain the majority.

And the President's son-in-law?

Double-digit whipping.

He's about to concede any minute. It was on CNN.

If he can find the podium.

Are they playing it as a defeat for the First Family?

I think they're playing it as a victory

for his Congressional district.

No, no, I'm fine.

You and Vic come up for the funeral.

Hasn't been set yet.

It'll probably be in a few days.

All right, sweetheart.

I love you, too. Good night.

Ellie worrying about her father.

The list of condolence calls so far.

When you have a moment, let us know which ones

you'd like to return personally.

Hmm.

It's odd really, watching yourself being replaced

on national television.

Planned obsolescence.

Presidents and mid-sized family sedans.

Yes, sir.

Would you have run again if you could?

I think Mrs. Bartlet might have had something

to say about that, don't you?

Well, the electorate can be very persuasive

when they want something badly enough.

In the service of two mistresses,

these past eight years.

That's been my fate.

Thank God for the 22nd Amendment.

I'm spared that particular conversation with Abbey.

First time I met Leo, we argued.

About what?

Monetary something. Role of the Fed.

Who won?

I did.

I'm sure if you could ask him, he'd say he did.

We almost lost him 15 years ago.

Did you know that?

Abbey and I used to talk about it.

I was prepared then.

Not today.

CBS may call Maine for Vinick.

Tell them they can't.

Great, I'll pretend

I'm their political director.

We're less than a tenth of a percentage point apart.

Anything below one percent is an automatic retabulation.

I've got 50 election lawyers waiting by

the Judicial Courthouse in Augusta.

Now get on the phone and tell them they can't. Okay.

You realize we have 50 lawyers in Maine

and not a single one in Oregon,

with almost twice the electoral votes?

How did that happen?

Oregon looked safe.

Well, it's not safe, it's dangerously unsafe.

It's unsafe at any speed.

We don't have a single lawyer there.

Well, how are we gonna...? Pull two lawyers from Nevada.

Ship 'em to Oregon, problem solved.

What's going on in the ballroom, anybody still down there?

Oh, the Foo Fighters

finally ran out their play list,

and Dave Matthews is into his third encore,

and the bar's out of Corona.

How are we coming on the too-close-to-call,

it's-time-to-go-home-and- get-some-sleep statement?

The Congressman's tinkering with it.

The Congressman doesn't read that.

He wanted to go over it in case...

The Congressman doesn't read that from a podium.

If we're sending everyone home,

we send Goodwin out there.

Don't turn the next President of the United States

into a junior high school principal.

You think this'll go all night? Maybe not.

Turn up the volume.

Just getting word right now

at this hour, we are prepared now to call Vermont

and its three electoral votes, and Iowa,

and its seven electoral votes, for Senator Arnold Vinick.

A total of ten electoral votes for Vinick.

With both candidates' home states

of Texas and California

decidedly up for grabs,

those ten votes could be decisive...

Oh God, look at this.

We are calling the State of Maine for Senator Vinick.

Maine and its four electoral votes now belong

squarely in the red column, Maine being a big and...

All right, thanks.

Appreciate it. Huh?

Not yet, my friend, not yet.

That was the Speaker.

They just called the Maine second for Zolosky.

We lost the House.

South Carolina Statehouse, Illinois and Colorado, too.

How'd the Speaker sound?

He sounded unemployed.

President Jed Bartlet, closed hours ago,

and the state remains too close to call at this time.

And now, with over 85%

of polling places now in,

we are prepared to call Texas

for native son, Congressman Matthew Santos.

34 electoral votes will be added to the Santos...

Are you sure you don't want to wait

until we hear...?

Hey, who cares what we're gonna hear?

He won his home state.

Worst-case, he's Governor, Senator.

He can clear as much brush as he wants. Let's go right now.

Hook 'em, Horns.

34 electoral votes.

Who needs Maine and the crummy maple syrup caucus?

That's Vermont. Yeah, them, too.

♪ Deep in the heart of Texas ♪

♪ The prairie sky is wide and high ♪

♪ Deep in the heart of Texas ♪

♪ The sage in bloom is like perfume ♪

♪ Deep in the heart of Texas... ♪

It's all down to California now.

Have you seen Josh?

Not in a while.

♪ Deep in the heart of Texas... ♪

Have you seen Josh Lyman?

Thank you.

I called housekeeping.

I don't want Mallory...

coming here and finding the paramedic stuff.

We won Texas.

California would put us over.

You've done a remarkable thing.

Win or lose, an extraordinary thing.

I talked him into this, into joining the ticket.

Nobody ever talked Leo into doing anything

he didn't want to do.

And he'd want you upstairs.

Not down here.

You belong up there, it's your night.

He was so proud of you, Josh.

The Republican base must have been pleased

as they watched the actual results come in.

If I lose California, that's it. Take my marbles and go home.

You are not going to lose California.

We should've spent more time there.

Well, we didn't.

Spent more time where?

The south, which we won, hands-down.

Not South Carolina.

With a Democratic Governor who probably filled out

every Santos ballot by hand? How are we possibly...?

We can challenge this in court.

Find a few precincts out west

where McGarry was the reason they voted Democrat.

They'll laugh you out of the courthouse.

What are you gonna seek?

Everybody, shut up.

This is not about Leo McGarry.

That's not why we're weak in Southern California.

It's San Andreo.

Your support of nuclear power

isn't why we were weak in Texas, weak in New Mexico, weak in...

The hell it isn't.

This isn't about skin color.

Sometimes the voters don't decide.

Circumstance decides, history decides.

All right, let me... let me at least

talk to the lawyers.

Hodder's got a team meeting downstairs.

You have a number where I can reach Santos?

It is too premature to start

talking about calling... I want a number. I'm gonna dial it

as soon as they call California, and I want my daughter in here.

Where is she? She's putting your grandkids to bed.

Turn up the TV. What?

Turn up the damn television.

Turning tide.

Ironically, Vinick's experiencing a small surge

in late balloting, possibly due to the death

of Democratic Vice Presidential candidate Leo McGarry

and showing a great deal of strength in the north

to offset predictably low turnout

in San Diego County

near the site of last month's nuclear accident.

I'm sure that Vinick never anticipated winning

after the catastrophic nuclear accident

in California a few weeks ago.

Some Websites went as far as to predict

that Vinick was the loser of this election.

We are now ready to call California

for Arnold Vinick

by what appears to be over 80,000 votes.

Senator Vinick is the winner in his home state,

a burst of oxygen for a campaign...

What's left? Oregon and Nevada.

Vinick wins either one...

We have to win them both.

Every lawyer we got,

get them on planes to Oregon and Nevada!

It's hard to say if the election

will even be decided tonight, Steve.

Oregon and Nevada, a meager 12 electoral votes between them,

are all that separate one of these two men

from the presidency...

This election has been predicted for weeks now

to be one of the closest elections

we've seen in recent years.

Both camps have been prepared for a protracted legal battle,

though both are still hopeful that their candidate

will prevail tonight, once the final tallies are in...

In Nevada, more than 90% of the precincts have reported,

and in Oregon, that number is more like 92%,

and still the votes are too close

to give a clear picture of where this race is...

Arnold Vinick, having retired from his senate seat,

may be facing a much different kind of retirement

if he doesn't come up

with those four more electoral votes tonight.

Four votes that could make him the leader of the free world,

the leader of western world.

This could be for Vinick

the final political chess move of his career.

At least both the candidates can claim

to have won their home states,

which, in the case of Matt Santos,

could be a springboard for a future second run

at the presidency or statewide office.

Congressman?

Do you have a concession speech ready?

You're not going to need it.

Make sure you have language about how this wasn't

a racial or ethnic thing.

Let's all join hands and unite behind, you know...

Yes, sir.

Thank you, Congressman.

Bram, make sure I have a direct number

for Senator Vinick in Los Angeles.

Hey, don't give him Vinick's number

without talking to me first.

He just said he wants me to get... If I didn't know what he said,

why would I tell you to ignore it?

More coffee?

I was just gonna mainline adrenaline.

I couldn't find a clean needle.

When this is over, we should go into business together.

Ying and Yang Political Consultants, Inc.

Our motto can be: "It ain't about the ideals;

it's about the money, stupid."

Pithy.

You don't think it might scare off prospective clients?

Only the neophytes.

We'd be fighting off five-term Congressmen with a stick.

Seriously, we should talk about it.

You're not going with the Senator?

Tiny cubicle in the West Wing,

your own table at the Oval Room,

guaranteed spot

in every book index for the next four years?

Not much of a "make the trains run on time" kind of guy.

I like the gladiatorial arena, two candidates whacking away

at each other with a healthy ad buy.

Thanks.

But I am done.

I'm going home.

Yeah? Where's home?

Upstate New York, Essex County.

Bought a big house on the Hudson there

that I never get to see.

I was thinking about planting some flowers...

putter around the garden a little.

Flowers.

We're ahead by 2,000 votes in Oregon.

Anything less than 3,500, is an automatic recount.

Nevada, we're behind by a few hundred,

but anyone can request a recount, so it's...

Yeah. GOODWIN: We have legal teams

on the ground now both in Salem and Carson City.

So do the Republicans. We need to talk about

a possible legal challenge from the law firm

of Vinick, Vinick and Vinick, in case we win.

Oregon is ripe for a challenge.

Nevada's got a large number of seniors

with winter homes... how many of them voted in their home states?

10,000 voters had absentee ballots

both in New York and Florida four years ago.

We've had some reports of voter fraud

on Indian reservations, intimidation of Latino voters...

But that's just a few complaints.

A few might be all we need.

If that's how I win, it gives me a mandate

for what, chasing ambulances?

What the hell is that?

We just won Oregon.

All right!

It all comes down to Nevada.

"Winner takes all" has always been a part

of the Silver State's ethos, but what happens in Nevada tonight

certainly won't stay in Nevada,

as the nation's future president is...

We decimated our field operation in Nevada.

To move it to California,

where we won by only 80,000 votes.

We should have taken the bodies

from anywhere but Nevada.

The RNC has a team of lawyers waiting outside.

They want to file for a recount in Nevada immediately

if Santos wins.

No. BRUNO: If Santos wins Nevada,

it'll be by maybe 10,000, 20,000 votes.

There are over a million registered... No.

I know you don't want one of those junk lawsuits

that you rail about in speeches...

Damn right, I don't. This isn't that.

This is about people getting

who they voted for, this is about taking a few extra days

to ensure that our voters were heard.

Thousands of voters in Nevada are sunbirds.

They're registered in other states, too.

More than four years ago,

over 10,000 New York...

I'll be a winner, or I'll be a loser.

I won't be a sore loser.

Senator, if you win, believe me, the Santos people

are going to be filing a lawsuit

before the Secretary of State of Nevada

is finished reading the results.

Sir, this is it.

There are no second acts in American politics, not anymore.

You hate this, we all hate this, but if this happens

and you don't challenge it,

you're going to wake up in a week, maybe two,

and regret it for the rest of your life.

Hey.

Congressman, you need something?

No, no.

I had to get out of that room.

Same ol' talking heads babbling the same drivel

to fill up airtime.

They could just run it on a continuous loop.

No one would even notice tonight.

Did we even campaign in Nevada?

I seem to vaguely remember something

about a convention center a couple of months back.

It was an airplane hangar.

We were on the ground about 20 minutes.

I should have had you move there a couple of years ago...

maybe even headline a show at the MGM Grand.

Yeah, well, who knew?

Barry Goodwin and the lawyers

are planning a march on Washington

if we don't win.

What do you think?

I think you got some of the best legal minds

in the party in there... Come on.

Straight up.

I think you're young,

smart, the party's presumptive nominee

four years from now, win or lose.

You take it to court,

you're the guy who screams at the ump

'cause they don't like the call at the plate.

Nobody votes for that guy again.

Been a hell of a ride, though, hasn't it?

Yeah.

It has.

Congressman?

We think they're getting ready to call Nevada.

Yeah.

Send her in.

Yeah!

Sorry to disturb you, Mr. President.

You wanted me to wake you when there was a result.

Do we have a winner?

Yes, sir, we do.

It's only 30,000 votes.

You have to challenge it.

Shall I bring in the lawyers?

They're waiting outside.

You really think it's a counting error?

Anybody know how many Hispanics live in Nevada now?

Yeah.

But how many of them are illegal?

Get the president-elect on the phone.

I want to congratulate him.

Ladies and gentlemen, can I have your attention, please?

You've heard me say it before,

and I have meant it every single time.

Speech is on the podium.

Thanks, Bram.

Now, it has the voice of millions,

and has the force of law. For everything.

It's the best thing I've ever done in my life.

Please help me welcome the next President...

I think we may find a way to top it.

Of these United States and the next First Lady,

Matthew and Helen Santos.

Thank you!

Thank you so very much.

Thank you...

And thanks for sticking around all night.

You know, if you haven't left this room in a while,

the sun is coming up!

Arnie Vinick made this a better campaign,

and he's made this a better country

for all of us.

My father was a barber, my mother a domestic servant.

And I never dreamed that I'd have this chance

to serve so many people in so many ways.

It would be easy for me to stand here

and claim a sweeping mandate for the next four years.

I can't do that.

This was a razor-thin election.

My intention is to be the president of everyone,

black or brown, yellow or white;

Republican or Democratic.

I've got a lot of reaching out to do.

America has become more polarized.

You can't run for president and not see that.

Our votes may have been divided,

but our country will not be divided.

Because, ultimately, it's not about left or right.

It's about doing right.

Together, we're going to lift up those who have been left out.

We are going to ensure that the promise of America

is not the privilege of the few

but the birthright of all Americans.

I am more grateful than I can say.

You have given me an opportunity that comes to few people.

Perhaps fewer are worthy of it.

God bless you, and God bless America.

Thanks, boss.