Hurricane Sandy and 2012’s Election Campaign

By Gilmarie Brioso on November 5, 2012

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Hurricane Sandy caused the complete disruption of New York City’s daily rhythm. For some, it was work. Not only were the subways systems down, trapping many within their respective boroughs; but offices, restaurants and shops were damaged, without electricity or hit by Sandy’s massive waves. For others, it was school. Public schools along with many downtown universities, including the New School and New York University, found themselves caught with the threat of Sandy’s rising waters. This not only brought physical damage to the buildings but also screwed with the ITS systems such as The New School’s blackboard and email networks, which were down for at least two days.

But in gazing through the headlines about Sandy and her destruction, I realized that just days before the headlines were all about something quite different: the 2012 Election.

Hurricane Sandy hit at an interesting moment in time, only a week before Election Day. Therefore, I started to wonder: How would this affect each candidates campaign? How would Hurricane Sandy affect the actual polls and numbers?

 

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When asked about her own feelings regarding the effect of Hurricane Sandy, Rafaela Uribe, legal advocate for the Bronx Defenders, states that Hurricane Sandy “might really give Obama a chance to shine right now…That visit to New Jersey, with Republican Governor Chris Christie,…can really help his image. It…shows that, at the end of the day, what actually matters is what happens in people’s actual lives. It makes him [Obama] seem more grounded. Also, it draws people back to Katrina and how horribly Bush handled [the situation] and may make people second-guess if Romney will be able to handle it.”

In regards to Mitt Romney, the legal advocate states “this hurricane may make Romney seem even more out of touch…If anything I feel like his efforts may just seem like an opportunity to make his campaign look good.” Romney resumed his campaigning in Florida the Wednesday after the disaster, an act that was, in Uribe’s eyes, “ick to say the least.”

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It seems as if many share Uribe’s sentiments. The article “Hurricane Sandy Exposes Mitt Romney’s Self-Made FEMA Problem,” from The Daily Beast, talks about Romney’s urge to disband FEMA. The article states “he [Romney] lumped FEMA into a federalist argument about devolving funding and power to the states, specifically with regard to disaster relief.” Which supports Uribe’s view that Romney “has NEVER lost in his life. He doesn’t know what it’s like to realize you have to start from scratch,” and is, therefore, ill equipped to deal with such issues.

 

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Another matter that concerns me is the actual voting. Many areas in lower Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, and New Jersey still have no power, which means they are unable to carry and operate voting booths. Government officials claim they will try their best to give everyone in those situations a way to vote; but the matter is still a worrying one. Certain poll sites have been moved. The Board of Elections has sent out a notice with the changes. Please read this PDF to see if and where your poll site has been moved to.

But furthermore, what about the people with no homes? I fear they might consider their current problem more important than taking the time out to vote.

 

Hurricane Sandy has definitely disrupted the rhythm and daily lives of New Yorkers. But most importantly, the hurricane has disrupted the tentative and tense rhythm of 2012’s election campaigns in more ways than one. We just have to wait to see if it’s for better or worse.

 

Election Day is tomorrow, November 6th.

 

 

 

 

*Featured image by Snowboard Queen

**Image by david_shankbone

***Image by bael1

****Image by 2012Mitt2012

***** Image by Scoboco

 

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