Every vote counts, doesn’t it? When we walk away from the polls, we expect that our vote is tallied along with the rest and if it isn’t, somebody should find out why.

The U.S. Commission on Civil Rights recently released a report examining voting discrepancies in Florida’s November presidential election.

According to the report, black voters were nearly 10 times as likely as whites to have their ballots rejected and some Haitian and Hispanic voters were not provided ballots in their native languages.

Statistically, “while African Americans comprised about 11 percent of all voters in Florida in the November 2000 presidential election, African Americans cast about 54 percent of the ballots that were rejected in the election,” the report said.

Republicans are fighting back fiercely against the report, saying it is politically charged in favor of Al Gore, who narrowly lost the election because of Florida’s close vote.

According to the report, 180,000 ballots were thrown out while George W. Bush took the state by only 537 votes.

Had the election in Florida not been so close, this issue may not have come to light, which is worrisome. It makes us wonder how long the voting system in Florida has had problems, or how many other states have faulty systems that were overlooked because the race there was not so close.

Despite allegations by Republicans that the issue is partisan and an attack on Bush, it is not so. It is possible that the commission itself is biased, but the party divide should be set aside for this instance.

There is encouragement in many minority communities to make it to the polls. If minorities have reason to believe they are facing voter discrimination, they may not be so enthusiastic about voting, which doesn’t help an already apathetic U.S. public.

Clearly, black voters have been disenfranchised. They at least deserve an investigation to determine and correct a problem so their voice is heard at the polls.

U.S. citizens shouldn’t leave the polls wondering whether they got a fair count. That’s not what this country is about. If there is reason to believe there has been an injustice, it should be investigated.

Republicans should not avoid this investigation fearing Gore might be found the actual winner of the Florida election. What’s done is done and Bush is president, but if it turns out Gore did get more votes, it will be an extra kick for Florida to shape up the system and get ready for next time.

This should also inspire other states to analyze their voting systems - states that didn’t necessarily have close votes but may have overlooked discrepancies.

No matter what the results, something good should come of this fiasco. Chances are, polls will be better regulated and ballots will be less confusing.

If all goes as planned, this report will end up in the hands of Attorney General John Ashcroft. It will be his decision to ask the Justice Department to further examine the situation.

Despite Ashcroft’s conservative background, he should set politics aside and do the right thing, which is to make sure every voter gets heard.