All along the east coast of the continental United States, state and local governments are preparing for a potential Category 1 hurricane called Hurricane Sandy—what locals like to refer to as the “Frankenstorm.” The outer bands of Sandy have made landfall in the northeast and are already forcing thousands to evacuate throughout the affected flood zone areas.
Sandy is taking aim at several swing states, which are currently conducting early in-person voting. Thus, this could have a significant political consequences come November 6. Several swing states are already canceling early voting due to the weather and urging its residents to stay inside and stay safe.
Due to the hurricane both the president and Romney have canceled various events over the course of the next 2 days. The president is currently back in Washington D.C. to monitor the hurricane and Romney is in the swing state of Ohio, instead of his east coast trip. Romney has canceled all events for the next two days.
The federal government, NYSE, Nasdaq, and all major airlines flying into the region are all shutdown today due to the storm.
New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg has ordered a mandatory evacuation of all “Zone A” areas, which are the low-lying coastal areas in the city. Furthermore, public transportation has been shut down since 7 pm Sunday evening and all metro-north, NJ transit, LIRR, and path trans have been suspended until further notice. New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut have all been declared state of emergency and the national guard is on state by to help out where needed. Be sure to tune in at 3 p.m. for full up-to-date live coverage of Hurricane Sandy and how this will affect the political race come November 6.
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