For years, young voters have been discounted and labeled as apathetic no shows when it comes to voting. After 2012, the age gap will be ignored at a politician's peril. In 2012, according to exit polls, nationwide voters 18-29 years old comprised 19% of the electorate while voters over 65 years comprised 16% of the electorate. Most importantly, the voting patterns of the young and the old were mirror images of each other on Barack Obama and Mitt Romney as well as on key Senatorial candidates and ballot measures.

In the presidential race, 60% of voters 18-29 years old voted for President Obama while only 44% of those over 65 did, creating a 16% age gap. In key Senate races the pattern persisted. For example, in Indiana, 18-29 years olds were 20% of the electorate compared to 14% for the over 65 group; the young voters supported the Democrat, Joe Donnelly, over Republican Richard Mourdock (infamous for his comment that "god intended" pregnancy from rape) by 53% and the older voters by 43, creating a 10% age gap. The age gap was even larger in Missouri for incumbent Senator Claire McCaskill (D) against challenger Todd Akin (R) of "legitimate rape" fame. McCaskill had the support of 69% of the young voters and only 41% of the voters over 65 years for a whopping 28% age gap. In Ohio, the voters ages 18-24 were 17% of the electorate and voters over 65 were 18%. The young voters supported incumbent Senator Sherrod Brown (D) by 64% while only 46% of the older voters supported Brown, an 18% gap. An almost identical pattern existed in Pennsylvania's Senate race, where incumbent Senator Bob Casey (D) defeated challenger Tom Smith (R).

The age gap on marriage equality ballot measures in four states is more like an Age Canyon. Massive age gaps emerged in exits polls in all four states with two-thirds of voters 18-29 voting in favor of marriage equality and only one-third of voters over 65 doing so. The breakdown of the age gap in each state was:

• Maine: 68% of voters 18-29 years of age voted for same-sex marriage and only 44% of the over 65 were, for a 24% age gap.


• Washington: 65% of voters 18-29 years of age voted for same-sex marriage and only 39% over 65 voters did for a 26% age gap.


• Maryland: 70% of voters 18-29 years of age voted for same-sex marriage and only 36% of over 65 voters did, for a 34% gender gap.


• Minnesota: 67% of voters 18-29 years of age and only 36% of the over 65 group voted no on the state constitutional amendment to only recognize marriages between one man and one woman, making a 31% age gap.

The age gaps were massive and indicate a tremendous cultural change being driven by younger voters. In each of the four states, voters under 40 were overwhelmingly in favor of the equal marriage position while those over 40 were not. There were also significant gender gaps in all four states with women voting in favor of marriage equality and men rejecting it.

Sean Trende, RealClearPolitics
One of the more intriguing narratives for election 2012 was proposed by political scientist Brendan Nyhan fairly early on: that it was "Bizarro 2004." The parallels to that year certainly were eerie: An incumbent adored by his base but with middling approval ratings nationally faces off against an uncharismatic, wishy-washy official from Massachusetts. The race is tight during the summer until the president breaks open a significant lead after his convention.

Below you can find the Kentucky election results for the 2012 presidential election and the state's House races.

Kentucky and its eight electoral votes have been expected to go to GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney for some time, despite little polling leading up to Election Day. With the exception of showing support for southern governors, the state has consistently voted Republican since the 1950s, according to 270towin.com.

In 2008, the Bluegrass State followed that pattern, casting the majority of its ballots firmly for John McCain.

As far as the House is concerned, there's one race worth watching in Kentucky, the 6th District. The incumbent, "Blue Dog" Democrat Ben Chandler there faced Republican opponent Andy Barr in a repeat of their 2010 contest, which Chandler won by just 700 votes.

As the election results for 2012 roll in, this is your spot for live updates on the outcome of the presidential race, congressional contests and news from across the country as it happens.

Click here to check out our interactive election maps and to drill down on the data as the votes are counted.

Below, a live blog of the latest results and election news.

Rutenberg & Zeleny, New York Times
The most expensive presidential race in American history now becomes the biggest show on television, a night with enough uncertainty that it could become a telethon lasting well into morning.For the third time in the last four presidential campaigns, the Democratic and Republican presidential nominees went into Election Day close in the national polls, with not one of the major opinion surveys giving President Obama or Mitt Romney a lead of statistical significance. 

Tomorrow night I'll know if I'm a U.S. congressman. We have run a vigorous campaign and expect to win, God willing.

But win or lose, I wanted to capture my feelings in the last moments of the campaign. And I want to do it now because I don't know how I'll feel tomorrow when the race is over. In these last hours of campaigning -- and I'm writing this between stops -- I'm feeling particularly vulnerable, like I have something to say.

First, campaigning has led me to a deep affection for the people of my district. I'm not just saying that. Before, I sort of knew them, but now I feel connected to them. Why? Because they're amazing. With the rarest of exception, they all welcomed me so warmly, laughed with me when I told them to "vote for the man with the beard," even if they didn't like Republicans. They took a minute to stop and tell me what was on their mind. If they were in a big rush, they still took our literature and wished me well. Almost no one treated me like I was a nuisance getting in their way.

The people who were the nicest? Some standouts were the Arab-Americans of Paterson. Consistently warm, friendly, hospitable. There was Raed who owns the Palestine Barber Shop and told me he personally registered 200 people for my opponent, but insisted on tidying up my hair so I looked like a more professional candidate. There was Ahmed who owns a restaurant, told me he was voting for Pascrell because he criticizes Israel, but pulled me and my kids in from the cold for a half-hour debate on the Middle East. Many Arabs spoke to me in Hebrew, reminding me they had grown up and lived in Israel.

The Community Baptist Church in Englewood is one of the largest black churches in our area. They hugged me, prayed with me, welcomed me, and treated me like family.

The Dominicans at their banquet. They got up to take pictures with me, escorted me from table to table, ran around trying to find me kosher food. And there is no question that the most fun I had in the campaign was dancing for four hours straight on the back of a truck at the Dominican Day Parade. (You can see the video at shmuleyforcongress.com)

The Korean-Americans, with their exceptionally polite manner. Hosting me at their debate and at their harvest festival, they wanted me to always feel at home.

More than anyone else, the good people of the Bergen County Republican Organization, BCRO, who never flinched for a moment when an orthodox Rabbi became their congressional candidate. To the contrary, they were immensely proud and treated me like a son at all times. The warmth shown to me by the Republican leaders of this district has been monumental, and that is especially true of Bob Yudin, the BCRO chairman.

On the campaign trail, I've loved making people laugh. Normally, when a candidate comes over to you to get your vote it's an annoyance. So I walked over to the women and asked them, "How many times in your life has a clean-shaven man let you down?" All of them said, "Many." Well, then you have to vote for the man with the beard. Case closed.

After 11 years as Rabbi at Oxford, I feared I would never encounter the same level of diversity like I found in a University that has students from all over the world. But our district is one of the most diverse in America. Meeting with and being greeted by people from every nationality made me experience a deeper, shared humanity.

In campaigning I've also been able to live the great Biblical teaching that every human being is created in the image of Gd. Democracy is all about the infinite worth of each individual, and the powerful see their fate rise and fall by the will of the people.

I've loved having my kids on the campaign trail. Our little Cheftziba, all of 4 years old, walks up to people and hands them our brochures. No doubt she's been responsible for more than a few votes. Shterny, my daughter in university, is the whiz behind so many of my campaign videos, including the super-popular "Vote for the Man with the Beard" and many in the "Where's Bill" series that have received so much national media attention. My wife Debbie doesn't like when people are mean to me on the campaign trail. As I said before, it hasn't happened a lot but when it did, she bristled. She's used to people coming over to thank me for my books. Meeting people who dislike me for my political party has taken some getting used to.

As far as democracy is concerned, here is where I've become less inspired and a bit more cynical. I've discovered that our democracy needs a severe overhaul with congressional districts that are not drawn up by professional politicians who gerrymander them in proverbial smoke-filled rooms. And I'm sick of hearing about Ohio. I think every American should be able to decide who their president is. But I'll save that for another day.

Vote for Shmuley! Vote for the man with the beard!

Rabbi Shmuley Boteach, whom The Washington Post calls "the most famous Rabbi in America," is the Republican Candidate for Congress in New Jersey's Ninth Congressional District. The international best-selling author of 29 books, he will shortly publish "The Fed-up Man of Faith: Challenging G-d in the Face of Tragedy and Suffering." His website is www.shmuleyforcongress.com . Follow him on Twitter @RabbiShmuley.

Gerald Seib, WSJ
The presidential campaign has wrapped up pretty much the way smart folks in both parties expected all along: It's close, with the outcome dependent more on whose partisans are loyal on Election Day than on how many voters changed their minds along the way.Enlarge ImageObama and Romney are scrambling for a win in states that will determine who claims the 270 Electoral College votes needed to take the White House.As Election 2012 draws near, never have so many millions of dollars been spent to move so few votes. So what factors determine who wins in such a race? Jerry Seib joins the News...

As the battle for Colorado goes to the voters Tuesday, both turnout and the presidential race are major factors in both parties' playbooks.

Republicans recaptured the Colorado House of Representatives in 2010 by one seat after 197 votes in one district swung control to the GOP. But Republicans are struggling to keep control in 2012 after legislative redistricting that could help the Democrats regain a majority in the House. Republicans currently control the state House 33-32, while Democrats control the state Senate and the governor's office.

"We feel good, but you never know until the polls close," state House Minority Leader Mark Ferrandino (D-Denver) told HuffPost.

While many have focused on the decision by the Republican-controlled House to block legislation to legalize civil unions in Colorado, both Ferrandino and state House Speaker Frank McNulty (R-Highlands Ranch) insist that jobs and the economy remain the top issue for voters as they enter into the last days of the election. Both representatives note that education issues continue to dominate as well, with McNulty identifying growth in the technology and aerospace economy as key to the state.

The battle remains close. Both McNulty and Ferrandino said that the swing-state battle between President Barack Obama and Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney will have an impact on the race, and will likely help increase voter turnout. Ferrandino said that the Obama campaign has been mobilizing voters for his side, while McNulty said that the Romney vote is expected to help pull Republican state legislative candidates across the finish line. HuffPost Pollster estimates that Obama and Romney are in a virtual dead heat in Colorado.

Ferrandino, who would be the first openly gay House speaker in Colorado history, said Democrats are poised to focus on economic development issues if they recapture the majority, working with Gov. John Hickenlooper (D) and the state Senate. At the same time, he noted that a Democratic House would continue to block GOP measures on abortion, voter identification and immigration.

McNulty pointed to the Republican majority's record of working with Democrats this year on a series of issues, including the budget and education. He said the GOP is also planning to focus on economic growth if it retains the majority this year.

"Our goal is work with our governor to improve Colorado's economic climate," McNulty said.

As McNulty promoted bipartisanship, Ferrandino painted the opposite picture.

"People are sick of the political fighting and bickering that is happening," Ferrandino said.

McNulty said that the 2012 race is notable due to the spending of outside groups on the state legislative races. While he said he understands the competitive nature of the races in the state, he expressed the concern that the precedent for outside spending to influence Colorado politics has been set.

"Once you head down that road," he said, "it is tough to turn back."

When I appeared on ABC News' Nightline after the second presidential debate, reporter Jake Tapper asked me who was healthier -- Obama or Romney. I gave two responses, one of which was edited out. I first said that criteria for health are different for Presidents because at times they have to be ruthless. I also said, "Someone who repeatedly lies but thinks he's telling the truth is not healthy enough to be president." Which statement do you think was edited out?

This election is between a person who tied his dog to the car roof before driving hundreds of miles on a family vacation, and someone who would never think of doing that. It's a race between someone dedicated to taking care of himself versus someone who strives to take care of others. One man brilliantly provides his own safety net with money sequestered in Cayman Islands and Swiss bank accounts; the other provides social safety nets like FEMA, the Affordable Health Care Act, and auto industry rescues. Ultimately, the race is between someone who would happily tie 47% of Americans to the roof of his car and someone who wants those Americans to ride with him in his car.

Perhaps it's not Romney's fault that he is the way he is: he was raised in a religious culture that discourages close contact with non-believers, and later accumulated enough wealth to avoid rubbing elbows with average Americans. When asked by a reporter if he follows NASCAR, Romney tellingly said, "Not as closely as some of the most ardent fans. But I have some great friends that are NASCAR team owners." Recently he likened the post-Sandy cleanup to picking up a football field after a wild game. That is who he is, how he thinks. Without question, Mitt Romney is less emotionally qualified to be president than Barack Obama. That he is also intellectually less qualified is the subject for another column.

Looking at the close poll numbers, it seems hard for Americans to see that one man is less qualified to be president than the other. Would those of us who plan to vote for Romney put a dog on the roof of a family car? Those who plan to vote for President Obama recognize he cannot take care of all of us, but know he tries -- especially in times of disaster -- to do the right thing. It boils down again to a choice between someone who takes care of himself first and someone dedicated to taking care of others. Having a social compact and safety net is essential for the health of any economy, and that is something that Governor Romney does not seem to understand. He told Fox News, "I'm not worried about the poor; they have their safety net."

Candidate Romney promises big change but how do we know what that big change will be? For instance, from everything he's said, how do we know big change won't be from diplomacy to belligerence -- especially since 18 of his 24 foreign policy advisors worked for George W. Bush, and are the people who brought us Iraq? How do we know what "big change" means to someone isolated from 99% of the American people and their problems, both because of his wealth and his religious isolation? All we have to go on, beside his frequent policy pivots, is that he said he wants to return FEMA to the states (even if their infrastructure itself is flooded and non-functional), that he is barely concerned about "the rising oceans," and that he will overturn affordable health care for millions.

The dirty word in October -- before Sandy changed everything -- was class warfare, which seems to be a war of the 1% vs. the 99%. We already know that Romney dismissed 47% of Americans as being lazy, but what we don't know is that the unconscious source of class warfare stems from murderous sibling rivalry, going back to the Old Testament: Cain said, after slaying Abel, "I am not my brother's keeper."

Romney Republicans and Tea Party members are satisfied with that sentiment, but when Sandy came along we saw something completely different. We saw people helping one another, clearly being their brothers' keepers. Obama has pushed his deep faith that we are our brothers' and sisters' keepers his entire adult life. Romney, however, says his brothers can find their own way, especially if government doesn't interfere -- and his sisters are second-class citizens who don't deserve equal pay for equal work or the right to make their own health decisions.

Interestingly, when push comes to shove, Americans are far more like Obama than Romney. And herein lies the paradox: many of us plan to vote for someone fundamentally different from ourselves, who doesn't know what we know. Sandy put this paradox into bold relief: scientists and prominent Americans like Al Gore and Ed Markey have been telling us for years about climate change. Most of us know what they say is true, so to label our reaction as denial is not specific enough. We suffer from a particular kind of denial -- denial of personal relevance.

The people of New Orleans understood the disaster that climate change can wreak; now, its tragic wake is publicly relevant to the entire Eastern Seaboard. New York's Mayor Bloomberg, stunned by the catastrophe that was Hurricane Sandy, endorsed President Obama. He wrote about the world he wants to leave to his children: "The two parties' nominees for president offer different visions of where they want to lead America.... One sees climate change as an urgent problem that threatens our planet; one does not. I want our president to place scientific evidence and risk management above electoral politics."

That so many good people -- especially women who should know better -- may end up voting for Romney reminds me of the play "Embedded" when a reporter in Iraq says of President Bush, "I know he's a liar; but I trust him."

This much is clear: Americans know that Romney doesn't understand our daily lives, and doesn't seem to care about our homes, our land or the people we love. The storm cloud that is Hurricane Romney is there for all to see. We'll know on Wednesday morning whether it made landfall.

Jon Ward, Huffington Post
The night before the first debate in Denver, I ran into Kevin Madden, the 40-year-old, square-jawed senior aide to GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney, in the lobby of the Denver Renaissance Hotel. Madden is about as disciplined and professional as they come in political communications. But when I saw him that night, he was tired, and despite his poker face, it showed. He'd been on the road with Romney almost every day for the previous three months, and it was clear he missed his wife and three sons. Romney's flagging campaign wasn't helping things.I had just arrived from...

Are you looking for a nonpartisan guide to the Berkley/Heller US Senate race, one that contrasts candidate stands in a fair way? The Campus Election Engagement Project, a nonpartisan effort to get students involved in the election, has produced guides for the presidential race and key Senate races that institutions like colleges and other nonprofits can circulate to give their communities accurate information in a way that they can't with more partisan guides.

For more detailed info on any of Shelley Berkley's positions, go to her Vote Smart page and click on the [....] to the right of issue you're interested in.

For more detailed info on any of Dean Heller's positions, go to his Vote Smart page and click on the [....] to the right of issue you're interested in.

Shelley Berkley

Abortion: Do you generally support pro-choice or pro-life legislation? Pro-choice
Afghanistan: Do you support the continuation of the United States' combat operations in Afghanistan? No
Budget: In order to balance the budget, do you support reducing defense spending? No, except for removing wasteful spending
Budget: In order to balance the budget, do you support an income tax increase on income above $250,000 by letting the Bush tax cuts on that bracket expire, and by eliminating oil company subsidies? Yes
Campaign Finance: Do you support the Supreme Court's Citizens United decision, which prohibited the government from restricting independent political expenditures by corporations and unions? No
Campaign Finance: Do you support the DISCLOSE Act, which would require key funders of political ads to put their names on those ads? Yes
Economy: Do you support federal spending as a means of promoting economic growth? Yes
Economy: Do you support providing tax incentives to businesses for the purpose of job creation? Yes
Economy: Do you support the Dodd-Frank financial regulation act, which established the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau? Yes
Education: Do you support increased federal aid to college students to help with the cost of their education? Yes
Education: Do you support requiring states to implement education reforms in order to be eligible for competitive federal grants? Yes
Energy: Do you support reducing restrictions on offshore energy production? Yes
Environment: Do you support the federal regulation of greenhouse gas emissions? Yes
Environment: Do you favor government support for alternative energy? Yes
Environment: Do you believe human activity is a major driving force in climate change? Yes
Guns: Do you support restrictions on the sale and possession of guns? Supports some restrictions, opposes others
Health Care: Do you support keeping or repealing the 2010 Affordable Care Act? Keep
Health Care: Should individuals be required to purchase health insurance, with assistance from government subsidies for small businesses and low-income individuals, as mandated in the 2010 Affordable Care Act? Yes
Health Care: Should insurance companies be required to cover patients with pre-existing conditions, as mandated in the 2010 Affordable Care Act? Yes
Immigration: Do you support requiring illegal immigrants to return to their country of origin before they are eligible for citizenship? No
Immigration: Do you support the DREAM Act, which would allow children of illegal immigrants to stay in this country if they've graduated high school, have a clean legal record, and attend college or serve in the military? Yes
Marriage: Do you support same-sex marriage? Yes
Social Security: Do you support allowing individuals to divert a portion of their Social Security taxes into personal retirement accounts? No

Dean Heller

Abortion: Do you generally support pro-choice or pro-life legislation? Pro-life
Afghanistan: Do you support the continuation of the United States' combat operations in Afghanistan? No
Budget: In order to balance the budget, do you support reducing defense spending? Position ambiguous
Budget: In order to balance the budget, do you support an income tax increase on income above $250,000 by letting the Bush tax cuts on that bracket expire, and by eliminating oil company subsidies? No - Says might consider ending oil company subsidies but voted against this
Campaign Finance: Do you support the Supreme Court's Citizens United decision, which prohibited the government from restricting independent political expenditures by corporations and unions? Unknown position
Campaign Finance: Do you support the DISCLOSE Act, which would require key funders of political ads to put their names on those ads? No
Economy: Do you support federal spending as a means of promoting economic growth? No
Economy: Do you support providing tax incentives to businesses for the purpose of job creation? Yes
Economy: Do you support the Dodd-Frank financial regulation act, which established the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau? No
Education: Do you support increased federal aid to college students to help with the cost of their education? No
Education: Do you support requiring states to implement education reforms in order to be eligible for competitive federal grants? Unknown position
Energy: Do you support reducing restrictions on offshore energy production? Yes
Environment: Do you support the federal regulation of greenhouse gas emissions? No
Environment: Do you favor government support for alternative energy? No
Environment: Do you believe human activity is a major driving force in climate change? Position unclear but has opposed climate change legislation
Guns: Do you support restrictions on the sale and possession of guns? No
Health Care: Do you support keeping or repealing the 2010 Affordable Care Act? Repeal
Health Care: Should individuals be required to purchase health insurance, with assistance from government subsidies for small businesses and low-income individuals, as mandated in the 2010 Affordable Care Act? No
Health Care: Should insurance companies be required to cover patients with pre-existing conditions, as mandated in the 2010 Affordable Care Act? No
Immigration: Do you support requiring illegal immigrants to return to their country of origin before they are eligible for citizenship? Yes
Immigration: Do you support the DREAM Act, which would allow children of illegal immigrants to stay in this country if they've graduated high school, have a clean legal record, and attend college or serve in the military? No
Marriage: Do you support same-sex marriage? No
Social Security: Do you support allowing individuals to divert a portion of their Social Security taxes into personal retirement accounts? Has in the past, current position unclear

Created by the Campus Election Engagement Project, a non-partisan effort to help college and university administrators, faculty, and staff get their students engaged in the election, which was founded by Paul Loeb. Candidate positions are drawn primarily from the Project Vote Smart, a non-partisan, nonprofit organization providing factual, unbiased information on candidates, officials, issues, and legislation, with positions inferred from candidate stands and more detailed information available on the candidates' Issue Position pages. See also the University of Pennsylvania Annenberg School's FactCheck.org, which lets you check the truth of candidate claims.

For a comprehensive guide to all races including state initiatives and local Congressional and legislative races, see Vote411.org, created by the League of Women Voters. You enter your address, or the address of your school, and click "Get Personalized Information on Candidates and Issues," and it will give you information provided by the respective campaigns on their stands, taking you first through national races, then statewide races, then local ones. You do have to scroll down to the bottom where it offers a comparison, because checking the box by a candidate won't automatically bring up their stands.

Greg Sargent, Washington Post
There's been quite a bit of consternation among reporters lately about Mitt Romney’s refusal to answer their questions. And rightly so. But let’s be clear on why Romney is refusing to engage reporters. If he did, he’d face questions about the mounting instances of dishonesty his campaign has resorted to in the final stretch — potentially tripping him up and placing all the dissembling into even sharper relief.In the race’s final days, Romney has adopted what you might call a Kamikaze strategy. His campaign is cranking out a startling...

E.J. Dionne, Time
Waiting in line for two-and-a-half hours is rarely an exciting experience. But when my son and I voted early - he for the first time - at a community center in Rockville, Md., both of us were inspired by the hundreds of other people intent on exercising democracy’s most basic right.In our deep blue county, this was largely an Obama crowd, crossing the boundaries of race, class and age. It was white, African American and Latino, young, middle-aged and old. These citizens eager to lift their voices reminded us that in this campaign, one coalition includes almost every kind of...

Jeremy Peters, NYT
First there was quiet. Then came the “super PACs.” Now the candidate is on his way. In a striking last-minute shift, the Romney campaign has decided to invest its most precious resource — the candidate’s time — in a serious play to win Pennsylvania.Mr. Romney’s appearance here on Sunday could be a crafty political move to seriously undercut President Obama, or it could be a sign of desperation. Either way, his visit represents the biggest jolt yet in a state that was until recently largely ignored in the race for the White House.

Steve Kornacki, Salon
To paint a scenario in which Mitt Romney is elected president next Tuesday, Republicans need to explain either how they'll generate a last-minute wave of momentum or how the polls that show their candidate lagging in states he has to win are flawed.The momentum bit is a tough sell. Romney made real polling strides in the wake of the first debate on Oct. 3, erasing the lead Barack Obama has enjoyed in the national horse race for the entire campaign and improving his own Electoral College outlook. But that momentum expired somewhere in the middle of the month, and since then the race has...

Hillary Chabot, BH
Mitt Romney’s campaign gurus insist they are cutting into President Obama’s swing-state advantage and carving a path to the 270 electoral college votes they’ll needed to win the White House by targeting independents — and they pointed to new polls yesterday showing gains in Ohio, Virginia and Florida as proof that their election plan is working.“The race is going to come down to independents, and that’s a group that Mitt has done well with,” said Romney pollster Neil Newhouse. “It’s simply cold, hard...

With storm assessments declaring New Jersey the hardest-hit state by Hurricane Sandy, politicians face a delicate balance of staying in the public eye without politicizing tragedy.

The race for the 9th Congressional District seat in northern New Jersey between Rep. Bill Pascrell (D) and Rabbi Shmuley Boteach (R) provides a case in point.

With electricity outages in much of the area, finding a place to recharge computers and cell phones is important to stay connected.

"As the only major location in town with power, Bergen County residents flocked to the Garden State Plaza to take a break from Hurricane Sandy's aftermath. The mall had opened on Tuesday to serve as a charging station for residents and long lines were also forming in the food court and mall restaurants," Paramus Patch reports.

Candidate Boteach urged owners of the Garden State Plaza to keep the mall's doors open for people who lost power.

"When I visited Garden State Plaza yesterday evening to be in a warm place with light and power with my kids, I noticed hoards of people affected by Hurricane Sandy who were able to find some comfort by taking advantage of the warmth and power available at the mall," Boteach said in a statement on Wednesday.

"The greatest concern right now in New Jersey is the safety and well-being of our friends, family and neighbors. I urge the residents of New Jersey to do just one good deed following this disaster of epic proportions; we should come together not as nation of Republicans and Democrats or conservatives and liberals, but as a nation of Americans, who care for each other in times of crisis and need."

On Monday, Boteach, who calls himself "America's rabbi" and has served as a spiritual adviser to reality TV star Jon Gosselin and the late Michael Jackson, also released a video of himself in windy weather, saying in part: "When this crisis is over, make sure you go to a relief center and assist. Help your neighbors clean up the debris. Together, we'll bring blessing to America through our unity."

Pascrell weighed in on the storm by shying away from videos and mall promotion and focusing on congressional duties, saying in a statement on Tuesday that he thanked President Barack Obama for approving Gov. Chris Christie's request for help from the federal government. Obama granted a pre-disaster emergency declaration for New Jersey on Sunday evening and declared a disaster statewide on Tuesday. Pascrell has also sought additional federal assistance for Bergen and Passaic counties.

"I commend President Obama for his fast response to the governor's request for federal assistance in New Jersey, but additional resources are required in northern New Jersey due to damage sustained by Hurricane Sandy," Pascrell said.

"As a result of a levee breach on the Hackensack River, residents in Moonachie, Carlstadt and Little Ferry are stranded and in desperate need of assistance. I want to ensure local governments and first responders have the federal government's support in their efforts to keep residents safe and help the long term recovery after this storm."

Pascrell and Boteach are competing for a newly redrawn Democratic-leaning district spanning parts of Bergen, Hudson and Passaic counties.

Follow Daniel Lippman on Twitter @dlippman

************************* The Huffington Post is eager for insights from our community, especially people with experience in power, infrastructure and engineering, on the adequacy of emergency preparation in advance of Hurricane Sandy, and the degree to which past disasters have informed adequate planning and construction. Please send a note to sandytips@huffingtonpost.com with insights and suggestions for the important questions that need to be asked of relevant private sector and government officials, and point us toward stories that need to be pursued.

Scroll down for live blog updates.

Jamelle Bouie, Salon
Six months ago, liberals were preparing for the worst. After a winter of fast growth, the economy had begun to slow down and unemployment had begun to creep back up. Mitt Romney was close behind in the race for the White House, and there was little indication that President Obama could pull ahead and win. And the Senate, a stronghold for Democrats over the last six years, looked vulnerable.

WASHINGTON, Oct 30 (Reuters) - More than 1.2 million Ohio residents have already voted in the state which is seen as one of the most crucial in deciding the Nov. 6 presidential election.

The Ohio Secretary of State's office said that as of Oct. 26, about 1.26 million voters had cast ballots by mail-in absentee ballots or through early in-person voting. That represents about 22 percent of the number of people who voted in the 2008 presidential election.

Secretary Jon Husted said the pace of early voting was picking up ahead of next week's election. Absentee ballots must be postmarked by Nov. 5 or they can be delivered in person to the board of elections until the close of polls on Nov. 6.

The Secretary of State's office said 1.32 million absentee ballots had been sent out this year. About 64,000 have not yet been cast.

Ohio took the unusual step this election of sending out absentee ballot applications to all registered voters. But if a resident requests an absentee ballot, then they must use it to vote. If a person who has requested an absentee ballot shows up at a polling place on Election Day, he or she will be given a provisional ballot.

Legal experts say that if the race is very close and hangs on the result in Ohio, it may have to wait until provisional ballots are counted. Under state law, they may not be counted until at least Nov. 17.

Joe Klein, Time
We’re a week away from the election. I’m in the doldrums, stuck in a Washington hotel while a storm called “Sandy” pummels Bruce Springsteen’s beloved Jersey Shore. I tried to spend a day out with the President and Bill Clinton, but my shirt got caught. We went to Florida last night and the storm kept us spinning right back to DC this morning. Over the past week, everyone’s been asking me who’s going to win. Beats me. I really don’t know. The polls seem stalled, hilariously inconclusive. The race  is...

Andrew Kohut, Pew
As the presidential campaign enters its final week, Barack Obama has failed to regain much of the support he lost in the days following the first presidential debate and the race is now even among likely voters: 47% favor Obama while an identical percentage supports Mitt Romney.The latest national survey by the Pew Research Center for the People & the Press, conducted Oct. 24-28 among 1,678 registered voters, including 1,495 likely voters, finds Obama holding a statistically insignificant two-point edge among registered voters: 47% to 45%. This is little different from the 46% to 46%...

Are you worried that Frankenstorm will restrict your access to up-to-date polling numbers? Do you know more about the state of the race in places you've never been to, but haven't decided what to do for Hallowe'en yet? Then you have come to the right place! With one week to go before Election Day dawns, the race for president is about as tight as it can get, so let's get right to it.

First, a look at the overall state of the electoral math:

[Click on any of theses graphs to see larger-scale versions.]

Things stayed pretty close to where they were last week (note: due to the final debate, last week's column ran on Tuesday, so you may have missed it). Barack Obama's overall electoral vote ("EV") total spiked upwards, then fell back, and finished at 280 EV, one down from where he started. Mitt Romney's total spiked way down, but then partially recovered by week's end, to close at 235 EV, down from 244 EV. The number of states perfectly tied stayed high, going from 13 EV to 34 EV, before falling back to 23 EV at the end. Percentage-wise, this left Obama at 52.0 percent of the overall Electoral College, while Romney fell back to 43.7 percent.

Eleven states moved around in the categories this week, which was mostly bad (but not terrible) news for Obama. Obama lost ground, but held onto, two states (Minnesota and New Mexico), while losing two to "Tied" (Iowa and New Hampshire). The only good news for Obama was flipping Colorado from Romney, but Obama only holds a thin lead here which could easily change back. Mitt Romney got good news in two of his states, and bad news in one, as Arizona and Tennessee firmed up and Montana weakened. Tennessee hadn't had a poll in a very long time, though, so this probably doesn't represent any real movement, just a reality that had been there all along. Still, it's good news for Romney who maintained his hold on all three states. Three states moved, but then moved back, leaving them where they started. Wisconsin firmed up for Obama, but then weakened in a subsequent poll; North Carolina slipped from Romney into a tie, but then drifted back; and Virginia briefly went from Tied to Obama, but then fell back again.

Romney's dip, in the chart above, was due to losing North Carolina and Colorado. His partial recovery was picking North Carolina back up again. Obama gained ground by briefly holding Virginia. When he lost it back to Tied, he also lost Iowa, but gained Colorado to partially offset the loss. At the very end, he lost New Hampshire to Tied. There are three states currently in the Tied category, Iowa, Virginia, and New Hampshire, for a total of 23 EV.

Let's take a closer look at the movement for each candidate, starting with Mitt Romney:

[Definition of terms: "Strong" means 10% or better in the polls,
"Weak" means 5% or better, and "Barely" is under five percent.]

Mitt Romney showed some strengthening among his base "red" states, but actually lost ground overall this week. Overall, he ended the week down by nine EV due to the loss of Colorado to Obama. Romney had some movement in his "Strong" numbers, as first he lost Montana and then gained Tennessee. This was a net gain for Romney, from 134 EV to 142 EV. Romney's "Weak" numbers also managed to grow over the week, from 46 EV all the way up to 60 EV before falling back to 49 EV. This pushed Romney's critical "Strong Plus Weak" line up to 191 EV, which he hasn't seen since the beginning of this month. Firming up Arizona added the 11 EV Romney gained here over last week.

This puts Romney in good (but not great) shape with one week to go. He has made up the ground he lost among his base over the month, but he still has never broken the barrier of polling ahead in states which add up to 250 EV, much less the 270 EV he needs to win.

Which brings us to how Obama's doing:

Overall, Obama stayed about the same, but what must be worrying Team Obama right now is that he seems to be weakening in some of his base "blue" states. That's a bad trend, one week out. For the week, Obama only lost one EV from his total. Obama, however, lost 15 EV from his Strong category, with the weakening of New Mexico and Minnesota. This brought his Strong number down from 210 EV to 195 EV at week's end. Obama was up briefly in Weak with the addition of Wisconsin, until it slipped back to "Barely." At the end, Minnesota also slipped into Barely, completing a one-week slide down from Strong Obama, which, again must be a little disconcerting for Obama fans. As a result, Obama's Strong Plus Weak ended down 10 EV this week to close out at 227 EV. The one bit of good news overall for Obama was capturing Colorado's 9 EV, but he's got a pretty tenuous hold on the state.

This all puts Obama in better shape than Romney, but neither candidate's position could be called "commanding" at this point. Four years ago, when I wrote my penultimate "Electoral Math" column, I subtitled it "Obama Has Closed The Deal." Needless to say, that wasn't a viable option this time around. While I'm usually skeptical of all the "it's going to be a close close race" nonsense from the mainstream media, this time around they may actually be right. The race is one whale of a lot tighter than it was in 2008 at this point, to put it another way.

 

My Picks

Onward to the part of the program where the deciding factor can be not just a poll number, but how my gut feels about a particular state. As always, the categories here are different to avoid confusion with the hard data above. Full lists of states in all my categories are provided at the end, as well.

 

Likely States -- Obama

Safe Obama (18 states, 227 EV)
One state moves into "Safe Obama" this week, while another moves out. Minnesota can't really be seen as Safe anymore, so it's going to move down a bit. But my gut tells me that the race is pretty much in the bag for Obama in Pennsylvania, so I'm going to consider it Safe for now. Because Pennsylvania has twice Minnesota's 10 EV, Obama gains a bit here this week.

Probable Obama (3 states, 26 EV)
While Pennsylvania moves up from "Probable Obama," Minnesota swaps places with it. While Obama has gotten some bad polling of late in Minnesota, I still feel pretty good about his chances there, and so can't really see the state as a tossup yet. Nevada and Wisconsin both stay stable here this week, because I'm still feeling optimistic about both of them.

 

Likely States -- Romney

Safe Romney (21 states, 170 EV)
While the polling doesn't actually merit it, I'm still going to move Georgia up to Safe Romney this week, as I think Romney's going to win in a cakewalk here.

Probable Romney (2 states, 21 EV)
While Georgia moves up to Safe, Arizona moves up to take its place, as it firms up for Romney. Missouri stays put.

 

Tossup States

Lean Obama (3 states, 31 EV)
Two states change places here this week, as Iowa moves down to "Too Close To Call" while Colorado moves up from the same category. This is truly where gut feelings come into play, I should mention. New Hampshire and Ohio stay as "Lean Obama" this week, even though a case could be made that either could be considered a true tossup. I feel good about Obama's chances in Colorado, New Hampshire, and Ohio. I feel less good about his chances in Iowa. We're into tossing darts at the wall here, folks.

Lean Romney (1 state, 15 EV)
Arizona moved up to Probable Romney from this category this week, but I'm moving Florida down to Too Close To Call. I know, Florida has looked like Romney territory all month, but the polls have stayed incredibly tight, so perhaps Obama's response to a hurricane might help him with Floridians, who knows? At least until next week, we're moving Florida to tossup status. North Carolina stays as Lean Romney, although a case could be made that it belongs in Too Close To Call as well.

Too Close To Call (3 states, 48 EV)
Florida moves down from Lean Romney, and Iowa moves down from Lean Obama. To round out Too Close To Call, Virginia stays razor-close, with no clear lead shown by either candidate.

 

Final Tally

This is the last time we're going to provide such an exhaustive look at the polling, we should mention, because next Monday we're going to just dive in and make our predictions for how the 2012 election is going to happen, state by state.

The hard polling numbers show Obama maintaining a lead, but not an overwhelming one. Obama holds 280 EV to Romney's 235 EV, a lead of 45 EV. This is up from last week, when Obama only led Romney by 37 EV. But in Strong Plus Weak, Obama's 227 EV over Romney's 191 EV shows only a 36 EV lead, which is down from last week's 57 EV, and little more than half of Obama's lead from two weeks ago of 67 EV.

The race tightens. Obama, in my estimation, has 21 states with 253 EV comfortably in his column. Mitt Romney has secured 23 states for 191 EV. This shows a healthier lead of 62 EV for Obama, which is down from last week's 73 EV lead.

Still, Obama retains the edge. From the 94 EV in the seven tossup states, Obama only needs 17 EV to be re-inaugurated. Mitt Romney needs 79 EV to win. If Obama wins either Florida or Ohio, the election may essentially be over at that point. Even if Obama loses both large states, he still has multiple paths to victory. Romney pretty much has only one path: a last-minute surge which breaks all the undecideds in almost all of the tossup states his way. The problem for Obama is, this is now looking quite possible instead of ludicrously unlikely.

Frankenstorm Sandy may impact voters' feelings at the last minute, but the real sword of Damocles hanging over the White House right now is this Friday's release of the October unemployment figures. If the numbers are bad, it could give Romney the last-second momentum he needs. If the numbers are good, Obama could waltz to victory. Stay tuned....

 

[Electoral Vote Data:]
(State electoral votes are in parenthesis following each state's name. Washington D.C. is counted as a state. This column series relies on Electoral-Vote.com for state polling data, as we did four years ago.)

Barack Obama Likely Easy Wins -- 21 States -- 253 Electoral Votes:

Safe States -- 18 States -- 227 Electoral Votes
California (55), Connecticut (7), Delaware (3), Hawaii (4), Illinois (20), Maine (4), Maryland (10), Massachusetts (11), Michigan (16), New Jersey (14), New Mexico (5), New York (29), Oregon (7), Pennsylvania (20), Rhode Island (4), Vermont (3), Washington D.C. (3), Washington (12)

Probable States -- 3 States -- 26 Electoral Votes
Minnesota (10), Nevada (6), Wisconsin (10)

 

Mitt Romney Likely Easy Wins -- 23 States -- 191 Electoral Votes:

Safe States -- 21 States -- 170 Electoral Votes
Alabama (9), Alaska (3), Arkansas (6), Georgia (16), Idaho (4), Indiana (11), Kansas (6), Kentucky (8), Louisiana (8), Mississippi (6), Montana (3), Nebraska (5), North Dakota (3), Oklahoma (7), South Carolina (9), South Dakota (3), Tennessee (11), Texas (38), Utah (6), West Virginia (5), Wyoming (3)

Probable States -- 2 States -- 21 Electoral Votes
Arizona (11), Missouri (10)

 

Tossup States -- 7 States -- 94 Electoral Votes:

Tossup States Leaning Obama -- 3 States -- 31 Electoral Votes
Colorado (9), New Hampshire (4), Ohio (18)

Tossup States Leaning Romney -- 1 State -- 15 Electoral Votes
North Carolina (15)

Too Close To Call -- 3 States -- 48 Electoral Votes
Florida (29), Iowa (6), Virginia (13)

 

No polling data since August:
(States which have not been polled since the beginning of September, with the dates of their last poll)

South Carolina (1/13), Alabama (8/16), Vermont (8/21), West Virginia (8/25)

No polling data at all, yet:
(States which have not been polled so far this year)

Alaska, Delaware, Kansas, Mississippi, Wyoming

 

Electoral Math Column Series Archive:

[Oct 23] [Oct 15] [Oct 08] [Sep 26] [Sep 17] [Aug 22] [Aug 8] [Jul 18] [Jun 25]

 

Chris Weigant blogs at:

Follow Chris on Twitter: @ChrisWeigant
Become a fan of Chris on The Huffington Post

 

Alexis Simendinger, RealClearPolitics
President Obama, plowing into the final week of what he calls his last campaign, cannot realistically gauge how Hurricane Sandy might change his fortunes in a election so close it could shift in a breeze, let alone a gale.What meteorologists dubbed "Frankenstorm" is expected to be gone by Nov. 6, but its effects on voters' thinking may linger -- and could affect the president's chances for a second term. Research has shown that public distress after disasters and grim economic events can make voters select their leaders based on how they feel about life in the moment, more...

I expected this presidential race to tighten up, so why should I find that fact so dispiriting?

At least two reasons come to mind. First, the stakes are high. If Romney/Ryan win and really do:

- Pass another massive trickle down tax cut on top of making the Bush tax cuts permanent;
- Repeal Obamacare, voucherize Medicare, and block grant Medicaid and food stamps;
- Deregulate financial markets and environmental protections;
- Push through budgets that spend a lot more on defense and a lot less on public goods, including education;

...the nation will be a lot worse off for it. I understand that they won't have a free legislative hand to wreck such havoc, but new administrations tend to get quite a bit of what they want, and even half of the above agenda would be terrible.

I and others have written a lot about that. Here, I'd like to think a bit about the second reason the current moment feels so unsettling: facts, policy analysis, pragmatic compromise, even common sense and simple math seem less relevant in this election cycle than in any in my lifetime.

That's not for lack of such analysis. I and many, many others offer tons of fact-based policy analysis, and many of us -- Krugman and the Wonkbook team are especially noteworthy -- try to do so in ways that are intelligible and go down easily. But I fear we are mostly writing for each other, our converted fans, and mindless opposition trolls.

It's no great insight to point out we're stuck in an age of truthiness, where fact-checking has been relegated to a section in the paper. It's also an old saw to knock folks making this argument as egg-heads who don't get the gut -- the Drew Westin critique that Democrats lose when they go for the brain instead of the heart. [Though I must admit I was struck when I read a passage this week from a New Yorker article citing the political scientists Gerber and Green on persuading non-voters to vote: "We do not see much evidence that what you communicate matters."]

I'm sure that's all true but it's not the whole story. When I say "policy analysis is missing" I'm not talking about coursework from the Kennedy School of Government. I'm talking about the math that says you can't cut taxes 20 percent across the board and balance the budget. Trickle-down doesn't work. Climate change is a real threat. Occupying other countries without clear benchmarks and goals is not in our interest. If we deeply cut federal spending, we can't invest in public goods including education, economically productive infrastructure, a safety net, pollution abatement, and so on-investments that matter to many of all political stripes.

But again, what bothers me about the Romney campaign and the current moment is not just the policy agenda. It's their ability to completely deny that agenda and gain ground in the polls. It's Romney's ability to very successfully argue that he doesn't really have a big tax cut (the first debate), that the tax cut he doesn't really have can be paid for by magic math, that his foreign policy is the same as the President's (the last debate), that his plan will add 12 million jobs -- the number that forecasters tell us we're likely to see regardless of who wins.

How did we devolve to a country where someone like this can just assert things with virtually no backup from reality and not only be taken seriously but be allegedly gaining ground on a president with a solid, if not inspiring, record? A president who can, with building evidence, make the case that were heading out of the economic woods, who's got a budget that's been scored by the CBO to stabilize the debt within the next decade, who plans to implement historic health care legislation that will unquestionably help tens of millions of people?

In trying to understand how we got here, I remembered a great book I read a few months ago, Ed Luce's Time to Start Thinking (which, in a very positive review in the NYT, the reviewer suggested might be retitled "Time to Start Drinking"). Ed fleshes out the details in ways worth reading for yourself, but here's my summary:

- Our politics has lost the pragmatism that no less than de Tocqueville recognized as being integral to our progress; it has been replaced by an ideology that is impenetrable to facts;

- Economists and policy analysts have themselves too often become undependable guides as, from their positions in bought-and-paid-for think tanks and endowed chairs, they have written off the challenges posed by globalization, technological change, and inequality as essentially consistent with creative destruction and efficient markets.

- Both of the above have led to underinvestment in public goods, particularly in education but relatedly in R&D and innovation;

- Money in politics reinforces all of the above, creating a vicious circle that boosts ideology over information, investment, innovation, and thus blocks both accurate diagnosis and problem-solving prescription.

As can be seen with crystal clarity in this election cycle, as these forces have evolved and gained strength, we are doing an increasingly bad job of maintaining our democracy. And it's not just the election -- it's also governing: consider the fiscal cliff debate today and the debt ceiling debacle last year.

Yes, it's time to start thinking again, but more pointedly, it's time to realize what a potentially wonderful country we have here in America and to once again embrace the responsibility for its stewardship. Right now, that means making the effort to see through shape-shifting flimflammers whose platform reduces to "tell me what you want and I'll tell you that I can give to you at absolutely no cost." I'll be happy to keep explaining the details, but I suspect at this point you don't really need them.

We have a but a few days left to wake up. I hope this missive serves as an alarm clock.

This post originally appeared at Jared Bernstein's On The Economy blog.