Thailand faces a critical juncture as people have lost faith in an electoral process supposed to ensure fairness.

In the coming days, judges from the highest courts will meet to decide the course of our history. Even in an established democracy, like the US, where public institutions are open to close scrutiny, the country's highest court has been called upon to end electoral deadlock. In December 2000, the US Supreme Court intervened in the deadlock between the Texas Governor George W Bush and Vice President Al Gore and ordered a halt to the manual recount of votes in Florida.

The move swung the advantage away from Gore just hours after tellers had begun recounting. At issue for the Supreme Court was Bush's complaint that the Florida Supreme Court had overstepped its authority and threatened "irreparable harm" to his rights, when it ordered a complete recount, including the previously excluded "under-votes" from the November presidential election. The focus was on the two justices, Sandra Day O'Connor and Anthony Kennedy, who held the outcome in their hands.

They took Bush's lawyer to task on the fundamentals of the US Constitution and asked why the federal court should get involved in a dispute at the state level. The two justices hit on a fundamental principle of the American system - the separation between national and state powers.

But the keys to the White House were handed to Bush.

Like Thailand, emotions ran high for months. Some leaders tried to let their differences go and move on. Laura Bush was seen holding hands with Hillary Clinton for the White House press corps".

Tom Daschle, the senior Democrat in the Senate, stood next to Bush and said: "Let's put this campaign behind us. Let's find a way to work together in a constructive way, and the most important thing we can do . . . is recognise the legitimacy of his presidency."

In his speech conceding defeat, Gore called for his supporters to unite behind his rival Bush.

"While we hold, and do not yield, our opposing beliefs, there is a higher duty than the one we owe to our political party. This is America and we put country before party," Gore said. "Let no one see this contest as a sign of American weakness. The strength of American democracy is seen most clearly through the difficulties it can overcome," he said.

While it is unlikely that the upcoming judicial summit will please all sectors of society with its critical decision, the past has shown that Thailand, like any other democracy, has no choice but to come to terms with a decision and move on.