It’s Election Day and we’ve got nine hours until the polls close for 2010–now we just have 734 days until the next election, and you can be sure that’ll be on the minds of every pundit as of 12:01 am Wednesday morning.
If you’re planning on watching the day’s coverage, TheWrap highlights every major network’s planned schedules–including the overtly confusing ABC/Breitbart kerfuffle. Don’t want to wait? Nate Silver’s FiveThirtyEight claims a 54-55 seat gain in the House by GOP from yesterday–the GOP only need 39 to take control. But as Andrea Mitchell said today during an interview with Gov. Haley Barbour (R-Miss), it’s still a 34 percent pro-GOP vote and appears to be a “firing” election rather than “hiring.”
Likewise from the New York Times, a prediction this could be a rough election day:
More than 500 House, Senate and governor’s races will be decided, if not by the end of the night, then over the course of the nail-biting days ahead as write-in ballots are counted and recounts are requested.
The looming questions of whether or not election results will answer growing concerns about the economy, a healthcare system repaired that may be smashed by a new Republican congress or whether or not the Tea Party are remotely viable are the big trinity of questions this year before 2012 crystal balls can be unveiled. Regardless, President Obama announced that he will have a live post-mortem announcement tomorrow afternoon (an interview President Obama taped with Ryan Seacrest will air today.)
In New York, Gothamist has a list of how to prepare to vote and a reminder to “TURN YOUR BALLOT OVER” to vote on politician’s terms of service.
Did you know Toy Story 3 is actually working hand-in-hand with election day and Obama caused a rise in sissydom? Mystery author Andrew Klavan explains how in a LA Times editorial:
Last summer’s Pixar blockbuster — one of the best American films in a decade — was a similar rebuke, not perhaps to the Obama White House specifically but to its underlying ideas. The fact that the film was such an immense hit, earning back over half its estimated $200-million budget in a single weekend, should have served as a warning that Americans, though they might like the president personally, do not share his agenda.
And if you were wondering, yes, Obama represents Lots-O-Huggin’ Bear. What does Toy Story 3 director Lee Unkrich have to say about this groundbreakingly insane reading on a film about childhood dreams and friendship? On Twitter:
Really? REALLY? Please keep Toy Story 3 out of your politics.
I think Unkrich is right. In other Internet news, people are snapping pictures of their I Voted stickers on Twitter and earning badges on social networking check-in sites like Gowalla and Foursquare. Are you surprising #election is a trending topic on Twitter? Did you know it’s actually a sponsored trending topic?
So Poynter discovered yesterday when the Washington Post ponied up the cash to make it so. What does it do?
“When users click on that topic, one of the Post’s tweets will appear above other tweets with the #Election hashtag — giving the Post prime real estate to promote its coverage and updates.” It’s in effect a genius sponsorship idea. Elsewhere online, Politico’s near-constant coverage for the House Races, Senate Races and Gubernatorial Races.