Election Day Weather: Who Wins When It Rains? The Weather Channel Offers the Election Day National Forecast

Business Wire, Nov 3, 2000

News Editors

ATLANTA--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 3, 2000

Conventional wisdom states that inclement weather decreases voter turnout, whereas pleasant weather encourages it. On Election Day Tuesday, The Weather Channel forecasts a storm system progressing across the country early next week. The intensity of the system is uncertain, but some inclement weather is likely to occur on Election Day. So which party benefits?

With a race this close, weather could play a significant role. Some say rain is good for Republicans. The argument goes that Democrats, on average, are more reliant on transportation that is susceptible to weather, such as walking, public transportation and bicycling. Another argument from author Steve Knack states that rain can deter people with low-level civic duty - Democrats and Republicans alike. If there is inclement weather, Knack argues, fewer voters hit the polls, and that means that election results are less predictable. Therefore, the candidate trailing in the election-eve polls should pray for rain.

Is there any truth to these theories? Many analysts have found that neither temperature nor precipitation has a significant effect on voter turnout. Dr. Curtis Gans, Director of the Committee for the Study of the American Electorate states, "By and large, it is only extreme weather that affects it, such as blizzards or hurricanes. Rain may be an excuse for somebody who isn't going to vote anyway, but will not be a deterrent."

The Weather Channel's meteorologists predict the most affected areas from the expected storm system early next week will be from the upper Midwest across the Great Lakes and Ohio Valley, including areas as far south as the lower Mississippi Valley. Along the Eastern Seaboard, the weather will be warm for November with little chance of any significant precipitation. Colder conditions will move in behind the storm system across the central U.S., while the West Coast should be fair with only spotty precipitation.

To find your local Election Day forecast, log onto weather.com, The Weather Channel's Web site.

BACKGROUND

The Weather Channel is the nation's leading weather information provider and an indispensable source for preparing for and understanding weather. The only 24-hour weather network in America, The Weather Channel reaches more than 76 million U.S. homes and 6.8 million in Latin America, where it owns and operates all-weather networks. Headquartered in Atlanta, The Weather Channel hosts a staff of more than 100 expert meteorologists in various specialties, 24-hour tracking of international, national and local weather, state-of-the-art systems for speed and accuracy and in-depth analysis of weather conditions. The Weather Channel offers up-to-the-minute forecasts and weather-related lifestyle information on its cable network Web site, weather.com, and distributes timely weather information through The Weather Channel Radio Network, 1-900-WEATHER, newspaper pages and wireless devices such as pagers and cellular phones. The Weather Channel is owned by Landmark Communications, Inc., a Norfolk, Virginia-based media-company.