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Tomorrow is National Election Day, when the citizens of the United States vote for a President, a third of the members of the U.S. Senate, the entire U.S. House of Representatives, and various state and local officials. Has the weather affected an election?
According to weather historian, David Ludlum, in his book "The Weather Factor", weather may have played a part in various past Presidential Elections, especially in close elections when only a few thousand votes in key states would have swung the outcome in the other direction. Some people have argued that large voter turnouts occur when the weather is favorable. However, others have argued that when the nation was more rural and more agrarian, if the weather were inclement the number of voters would have increased because the farmers would have had time to vote than if the weather were favorable for late season field work. The voter turnout often times would have been beneficial to one political party at the expense of the other.
Regardless of the weather, exercise your right to vote tomorrow, and encourage others to do so also.
Reference:
Gudah (?) , R., 1988 (Oct.): Precipitation and Presidents, Weatherwise, 41 (5), .
Ludlum, D.M., 1984: "The weather factor." Houghton Mifflin Co. Boston. 275 pp. (ISBN 0-395-36144-3)