Hurricane Matthew poses a true threat to the state of Florida, as the Category 4 storm’s potential caused President Obama to declare a state of emergency for Florida and has left destruction in its path. Governor Rick Scott has warned residents this storm could be very dangerous and to not take it lightly, as opposed to the bravado that Vanilla Ice is showing while vowing to hunker down and ride it out.
With residents preparing for the worst, some worry the hurricane will play a factor in November’s presidential election. Hillary Clinton is one of those voices, as she is asking the state to extend its voter registration deadline in anticipation of the difficulties the hurricane will create. Florida has set an October 11 deadline for voters to register, but Clinton believes destruction caused by Hurricane Matthew will make that impossible for some.
Clinton campaign manager Robby Mook said he hopes the state extends the deadline. The campaign has also delayed a $63,000 ad purchase on the Weather Channel until after the storm’s conclusion. Mook said they are asking the network to postpone these ads:
“We were in the process of buying television time nationwide on hundreds of different media outlets. Since the storm has clearly become very serious, we have asked the Weather Channel to roll back that buy until the storm has concluded. We do not think the voters of Florida need this election to get mixed up with their efforts to get information on this storm.”
Once the storm subsides, things will (of course) get political as presidential candidates react to the situation. After the flooding in Baton Rogue, Donald Trump criticized Clinton and President Obama for not visiting the area right away. We may see a parallel case in Florida as well.
