Diablos brings up a great point guys. Has there been anyone - either at the government or university level - studying solutions to how to cast and count ballots without the use of electricity? You'd think this would be a top priority for a nation reliant on local and national voting procedures?
Heh.
Sandy is supposed to hover over Central PA for quite some time. Lots of rural areas with sketchy electricity stability. I know some people out that way, pretty worried about them.
And it's true -- what happens when there's no power for the voting machines? Do we just write these people off? If, for example, Central PA (which is heavily Republican) still has no power on the 6th, you can rest assured the state government (which is all GOP right now) will step in and complain about votes not being represented due to a natural disaster.
Given the magnitude of this storm, I find it hard to believe most people will be able to shrug it off in a week. Furthermore, people who aren't totally engaged this election cycle who find that by mid-week their home/town/whatever is in ruins or at least in terrible condition may totally forget about the 6th.
Even if this isn't a total doomsday scenario, up to 10 mil people without power for at
least 7 days is a big deal. Lots of priorities get jumbled. Voting in an election might be tossed aside. In an already close race, this is the last thing we need.
In such a scenario I would hope the state legislatures of the states involved (i.e. Virginia, PA, NY, parts of NE) will agree to extend voting beyond the 6th if it's so bad it has forced people to relocate or have other responsibilities that get in the way of their right to vote. This could be a huge mess.
And leave it to the GOP to capitalize on a disaster/tragedy for political gain -- it's their M.O. Romney did it when Americans died overseas, so he'll do it here too. Hold on to yer butts.
