Prologue: The missing institution of impartiality
Introduction: Understanding the past for the sake of the future
Uncertain vote-counting in the founding era
The novelty of chief executive elections
The entrenchment of two-party competition
Counting votes at times of crisis
Hayes v. Tilden : to the edge of the constitutional cliff
The Gilded Age: an era of hypercompetitive elections
The progressive era : missed opportunities at a time of reform
America in the middle of its century : a tarnished ideal
The sixties and their legacy : the rise of democratic expectations
The eighties and nineties : reemergence of intensified partisanship
Florida 2000 : avoiding a return to the constitutional brink
After Bush v. Gore : reinvigorated demand for electoral fairness
Conclusion: The enduring quest for a fair count.