White House Chief of Staff Andrew Card said President George W. Bush will hold off a formal victory declaration to give Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry the "time to reflect" on the results.

Appearing in the Reagan Center where the celebration of victory by the Bush camp and the Republican supporters was slated to be held, Card said that Bush will "give Senator Kerry the respect of more time to reflect on the results of this election."

Early, the Kerry camp made an announcement, refusing to concede defeat before every vote in the controversial state of Ohio had been counted. "We will fight for every vote," Senator John Edwards, Kerry's running mate told supporters in Boston.

The key battleground state of Ohio has become the focus of a new dispute in the 2004 presidential election as the Kerry camp is challenging the results in Ohio.