US President George W. Bush received a potential boost last night in his bid for re-election when a court ruled that independent candidate Mr Ralph Nader, who experts believe helped Mr Bush win four years ago, be placed on Florida's presidential ballot.
As the Republican and Democrat campaigns both claimed momentum amid a mix of polls offering a confused picture of the US presidential race, Florida's Supreme Court ordered Reform Party candidate Mr Nader be allowed to compete in the state that decided the 2000 election.
A judge also ordered that Mr Nader be included on the ballot in Colorado, another state that voted for Mr Bush in 2000 but where polls indicate a close race in the November 2nd election.
Democrats around the US have been challenging Mr Nader's presence on the ballot because they view the consumer advocate as a spoiler who helped Bush get elected.
The Florida Supreme Court ruled on a challenge by the Democratic party against Mr Nader being included on ballots on the grounds his Reform Party was not a genuine national political organization.
"In making our decision in this case, we are guided by the overriding constitutional principle in favor of ballot access," the Supreme Court said.
Recent polls show Mr Bush is locked in a tight race with Democratic challenger Mr John Kerry in Florida.
Mr Nader was a Green Party candidate in 2000 when Mr Bush won Florida by 537 votes to clinch the White House. Analysts said most of Mr Nader's nearly 98,000 Florida votes would have gone to Democrat Mr Al Gore had Mr Nader not been on the ballot.
Polls show the 2004 presidential race is shaping up to be just as close as 2000, when the US Supreme Court ruled on the Florida recount to hand Mr Bush victory.
The Bush campaign said surveys this week showed Mr Bush was still enjoying his post-convention bounce and holding a lead over Mr Kerry, despite a Harris poll that gave the Democrat challenger a 1-point lead and a Pew poll that showed the race tied.