Posted on October 29, 2012

MSNBC Entertains Possibility Of Delaying Elections Due To Hurricane Destruction

ANDREA MITCHELL: We've seen in the past situations where power is not restored, in our own region here, for days, for more than a week -- for ten days. What happens if we get to election day and they don't have power? Which you need for many of these election booths, for the voting booths, which you need for people to get to the polls. Is there any precedent for doing something such as postponing a national election?



CHUCK TODD: Well, look, elections are run by state and local officials. The federal government does not run the elections as it is. Look, there is some precedence to this. During 9/11, on 9/11, was the New York City mayoral race and they delayed everything. You know, it would have to be up to a local authority to do that but that local authority -- I think, look, you're going to be getting into provisional ballot issues.



I think -- I think that that's the more likely scenario. You don't postpone the day itself, but maybe you expand the types of ballots, maybe you're more lenient on checking people in, but forcing provisional votes so it's going to take longer to verify the voters and all of those things. I think that that's the most likely scenario that you would have some localities that would have to move, change positions, maybe even delay, but that would seem the least likely option. But to come up with some way to deal with what you just said now, if you have an election voting machine and no power, do you deal with that?