. . . In addition to being one of the most bizarre presidential elections in the last 124 years, this year's campaign provides an interesting and revealing look at how the popular vote breaks down for the two candidates across the country. A map of the U.S. shows a vast ocean of support for Texas Governor George W. Bush throughout almost the entire middle of the nation with narrow slivers of support for Vice President Al Gore along the northeast coast, the west coast and the Great Lakes. Bush won 29 states to Gore's 19. Bush won 2,434 counties across the U.S. to Gore's 677. The counties won by Bush cover some 2.4 million square miles with a population of 143 million people. The counties won by Gore cover some 580 thousand square miles with a population of 127 million. Another statistic offers an interesting insight. According to Hamline University Law Professor Joseph Olsen, the average murder rate per 100,000 residents in the counties won by Gore is 13.2. The murder rate in the counties won by Bush is 2.1