Sioux City Journal

Countdown to Election Day

With 12 days to go, the heat is on

Posted: Friday, October 24, 2008

The polls appear to be tightening. The rhetoric is sharpening. Welcome to the mad dash to Nov. 4. Here's a guide to the dozen days before this election is decided:

Today

Deadline to register to vote in Nebraska

GOP presidential candidate John McCain in Colorado (Denver, Durango)

GOP vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin in Springfield, Mo.

Democratic vice presidential candidate Joe Biden in Martinsville, Va., and Charleston, W.V.

Saturday, Oct. 25

Palin speaks at West High School, 10 a.m., before heading to Des Moines and Fort Wayne, Ind.

McCain in New Mexico (Albuquerque, Las Cruces)

Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama in Nevada (Reno, Las Vegas) and New Mexico (Albuquerque)

Last day to pre-register to vote in Iowa

Sunday, Oct. 26

Sioux City Journal-Lee Enterprises poll results will be released

Sioux City Journal announces presidential endorsement

McCain in Cedar Falls before heading to Ohio (Zanesville, Lancaster)

Obama in Denver

Monday, Oct. 27

Palin in Virginia (Loudon County, Fredericksburg, Roanoke)

McCain in Pottsville, Penn.

Tuesday, Oct. 28

McCain in Fayetteville, N.C.

Wednesday, Oct. 29

NBC, CBS, FOX air 30-minute, prime time Obama commercial

Last day to request early/absentee ballot by mail in Nebraska

Thursday, Oct. 30

League of Women Voters holds forum for state legislative, county candidates

Friday, Oct. 31

Last day to request absentee ballot by mail in Iowa

Saturday, Nov. 1

Obama, McCain envision following John Adams' footsteps 208 years after he became the first president to move into the White House

Sunday, Nov. 2

Read a side-by-side issue comparison of the two candidates in the Journal

Monday, Nov. 3

Last day for satellite absentee voting in Woodbury County

Tuesday, Nov. 4

Election Day

Absentee ballot requests in South Dakota due by 3 p.m.

A laughing matter?
The candidates and their most ardent supporters may not have much sense of humor these days, but late night talk show hosts sure do. Here's a dose of the latest in political jokes:

"(Barack) Obama is so far ahead now, seems the only way he can lose is if his supporters screw it up. But ah ha! Obama's supporters have a secret weakness: They are Democrats." -- Craig Ferguson, CBS' "Late Late Show."
------
"They're so far ahead in the polls -- the Democrats -- they won't be thinking about the election. This is what we'll happen. On Nov. 4 they'll be too busy shopping at Whole Foods for the big Obama victory party. 'I've got the brie, I've got the free-range mushrooms, I've got the Tofu -- I forgot to vote!"' -- Ferguson.
------
"How do you spend $150,000 on clothes in two months? What, do you buy the original 'Thriller' jacket off of eBay?" -- Jon Stewart, speaking about the Republican Party's spending on Sarah Palin on Comedy Central's "The Daily Show."
------
"The only person McCain's not talking about is George the President." -- Stephen Colbert, Comedy Central's "The Colbert Report."
------
"I am sick and tired of Barack Obama saying that John McCain doesn't care about the middle class. For Pete's sake, who knew there still was a middle class? Might as well say 'Ooh, John McCain isn't paying enough attention to woolly mammoths and parachute pants. They're gone. Get over it."' -- Colbert.

Story Comments

I love it wrote on Oct 24, 2008 10:51 PM:

" After John McCain extolled the virtues of the the McCain family, his brother Joe abused 911 services this week by calling to complain about traffic! He also swore at the operator. Someone could have suffered while he tied up an operator with his rant. Classy! "

Sounds great wrote on Oct 24, 2008 10:39 PM:

" I'd much rather elect someone associated with an American party than electing someone associated with an anti-american party (the Alaska Independence Party). the website you quote is extremely biased and contains mostly propaganda. Do you believe everything you read on the internet?
Oh, and the New Party's objectives you describe sound pretty good right now. They EXACT qualities I look for in a job so I can spend more time with my family and raising my children instead of someone else. Lifelong access to education? Excellent! Is that what heaven's like? "

Already Voted wrote on Oct 24, 2008 9:35 PM:

" If you allow "undecided" to push pure l-i-e-s, then you should at least state that the item he references is part of a h-a-t-e Obama campaign and isn't worth the paper it's written on. Any informed voter knows that JOHN McCAIN was the keynote speaker for ACORN in February 2006...so isn't in any position to place blame on his opponent. As for being undecided, I seriously doubt it. Anything to take the focus off the Palin fiasco and the fact Obama is way ahead in the polls. "

Math expert wrote on Oct 24, 2008 9:24 AM:

" The article says there are 12 days until the election is decided. The election is decided on Election Day. If you include today and Election Day, there are 12 days left in the campaign. "

Scott C wrote on Oct 24, 2008 9:11 AM:

" This is just lazy. The headline of the paper today says "12 Days" to go - it's 11 Days.

Look at a calender and count how many days to Election Day.

Just lazy - I wouldn't expect anything else from this paper. I'm so finished with this "