Both candidates kept a low profile yesterday. Gore gave just a brief wave to television cameras, while Bush said he and his lawyers were cautiously optimistic.

Justices grilled lawyers from both sides during the intense, 90-minute proceedings yesterday, questioning the court's jurisdiction over the case and asking about the differing standards used in the manual recounts ordered on Friday.

The case focused on three issues, similar to those the court discussed in its Dec. 1 hearing on the Bush-Gore dispute, the only other time that it has heard a presidential contest case in its 210-year history.

Theodore Olson, the lawyer representing Bush, said the Florida Supreme Court violated both Article II of the U.S. Constitution, which says state legislatures must decide the procedures for choosing electors.

He said the Florida court also violated a federal law by changing the election's rules after the fact when it extended the original Nov. 14 statewide certification deadline to Nov. 26. Federal law says electors must be chosen under procedures spelled out in state laws passed before Election Day.

He also argued that the Florida ruling Friday violates Bush's 14th Amendment rights, as the differing "voter intent" rules counties use would cause some votes to be given more weight than others.

Boies countered that the Florida court interpreted state law and did not pass new legislation, arguing that the Florida Supreme Court has asked local officials to apply the "voter intent" standard in contested elections since 1917.