COLUMBUS, Ohio -- All the political predictions about Election 2004 turned out to be true, as the nation turned its eyes to Ohio to find out who would win the presidential race.

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The Provisional Question Cleveland Voter Reaction BOE Directors Talks About Election

And although the battle is over and President George W. Bush has been named the winner, Ohio still has a lot of votes to consider, mostly in the form of provisional ballots.

Ohio Secretary of State Kenneth Blackwell issued a letter to the Cuyahoga County Board of Elections and election boards across the state explaining the process that will need to be followed in order to get provisional ballots counted.

He directed the board of elections not to begin the process of verifying provisional ballots until noon, Nov. 4.

Cuyahoga County Board of Elections director Michael Vu said that until the board can begin verifying the ballots, they are under tighter security than ever before.

“We have always had a double lock and key system, but now as a result of this, we have added extra security … security present at the door,” said Vu.

The Cuyahoga County Board of Elections has 24,788 provisional ballots, 1,339 absentee ballots in their possession.

The board also sent out 2,629 military and overseas ballots.

These ballots and others statewide could have added up to deciding the winner in a close race.

But today, Kerry conceded that he could not have won in Ohio, regardless of the not-yet-calculated votes.

Kerry trailed Bush in Ohio by 136,000 votes.

Blackwell estimated the number of provisional ballots in Ohio could be as high as 175,000. In an interview with NewsChannel5, Blackwell said that while the uncounted votes will not change the outcome on the presidential race, they could have a significant impact on many local races and issues throughout the state.

For instance, the East Cleveland school levy is at a dead heat right now. It could be provisional ballots that determine whether the levy passes or fails.

Under Ohio law, provisional ballots are counted 10 days after the election. Vu said that he projects Cuyahoga County will have the ballots counted and certified by Nov. 29.

Vu told NewsChannel5 that there are things that need to be done to make sure the provisional ballot law ensures a smooth election process.

He said that clear guidelines need to be established, either at the state or federal level, which will delineate how to process provisional voters and how to count the ballots.

(Read More) about other Ohio results.