New York General Election | United States of America

Hopefully tonight we will know the final out come of the 2012 presidential election. Last week in the NY region we witnessed the devastation from severe unusual weather. Perhaps man is helping to accelerate changes in climate? Hurricane Sandy hit us harder than we ever imagined; but, hey, we’re New Yorkers (Jersey’ites and Connecticuters) and we band together to get us through tough times. 

This election cycle has been one of the most partisan polarizing ugly and negative elections I've experienced in my lifetime. There has never been two sides to facts until this election. There are not two sides to facts. The late senator from New York Patrick Daniel Moynihan is attributed for saying: "Everyone is entitled to their own opinions, but they are not entitled to their own facts"

The new "citizen journalist" blogosphere era of 2012, the partisan opinion repeated enough times in commercials and blogs although blatant lies is perceived as a fact. Perception vs reality. The end justifies the means. This election cycle brings obscene amounts of money spent by campaigns since the Supreme Court ruling that corporations are people and money is free speech. Money can't buy love but we will soon see if money can buy elections, politicians and public policy.  

Image courtesy President Obama Tours NJ Storm Damage Oct 31, 2012 07:10 PM

Acts of G-d, mother nature, hurricanes and other climate/weather disasters don't distinguish between state borders.  Republicans from Democrats, conservatives from liberals. We're all Americans. This picture is worth a thousand words. This picture is what we used to be... Americans. Republicans and Democrats working together to find centrist solutions achieved through pragmatic problem solving. 

Get out and vote today if you already haven't.  Good luck... Caveat Emptor

Real estate is local, politics is local. Just as real estate goes in cycles so does politics. Local economies affect the real estate market regional and local economies affect politics and both go in cycles. Presidential elections go in 4 year cycles.

Voting Procedures in NYC

General Election, November 6th
Tuesday, November 6th is the General Election. Vote! Some poll sites have been relocated and/or combined due to damage caused by Hurricane Sandy. Check back before you vote to receive the most up-to-date poll site location information. Poll sites will be open from 6am to 9pm.

Extension of Absentee Ballot Receipt Deadline. The State Board of Elections has approved an extension of the deadline for absentee ballots to be received and counted from 7 days after Election Day to 13 days after Election Day. Ballots must still be postmarked no later than Monday, November 5th, however they now have until November 19th to arrive at the local Board of Elections. Governor Andrew Cuomo made it even easier to vote in NY state. He announced that people will be able to file an affidavit ballot at any polling place in the state, allowing them to vote for president and U.S. Senate even if they have been displaced by Superstorm Sandy. But unless a voter picks an election site within the same district for the state Senate, Assembly and House of Representatives, they will be unable to select candidates in those down-ballot races. Governor Christie made a similar announcement for New Jersey voters

 UPDATE: Election Day | Upper West Side Manhattan 2:30 PM

I just voted. The best voting experience I have had sice I started voting at 18 years old. When I lived in California in 1980, my voting location was in a neighbor's backyard then I proceeded to their kitchen to place my paper ballot in a box. I was quite suprised how archaic voting in California was since it is a modern state.

Since being back in NY for 30 years I have been voting in elementary schools. From the old wonderful curtain lever booths to the new electronic scanners.

Today I voted in one of my favorite neighborhood landmarks, The Church of Saint Paul and Saint Andrew at the corner of my block. It was a wonderful experience. There were no lines, rather than a line we were seated in the beautiful sanctuary. Plenty of free cookies and coffee were served. Ushers then escorted voters by voting districts to other smaller architecturally detailed rooms filled with tables, private voting booths where we filled out paper ballots and then we entered the ballots in the electric scanners.

Update: 2012 Election Winners New York District 84:

President: Barak Obama (D)

Senator: Kristen Gillibrand (D)

Congress: Gerold Nadler (D)

State Senator: Adriano Espillat (D)

State Assembly: Linda Rosenthal (D)