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Word of Mouth

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Does Election Day have the potential for a bigger “boo” factor than Halloween for New Yorkers this year?

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Published: October 21, 2010

  • Despite the negative ad campaigns and the end-of-the-world scenarios offered by competing parties and candidates in the course of an election campaign, democracy is nothing to be scared of. Rather, it’s something to cherish, win or lose.

    Joshua Dyck
    Assistant Professor
    Department of Political Science

  • Actually, this election cycle doesn’t look like it will have that many surprises in it, but then if we anticipated them, they wouldn’t be surprises! If you want a nail-biter on election night, the place to look this election cycle is probably the state Senate. If the Democrats maintain control of the Senate, then redistricting will be under unified Democratic control for the first time since about the Cretaceous.

    James Battista
    Assistant Professor
    Department of Political Science

  • Note: These responses are presupposing a victory by Cuomo over Palladino, and vice versa.

    If Cuomo wins...

    Without question, a man with an Italian name will be elected governor. The election’s likely results will indicate how accurate polls can be, why a candidate’s reputation can plummet more quickly than it can rise, and that voting strength remains concentrated downstate.

    If Palladino wins...

    Without question, a man with an Italian name will be elected governor. Palladino’s upset demonstrates how last-minute surges cannot be predicted by polls, how important negativism remains in contemporary American politics, and the importance of broad funding from across the state.

    Claude Welch
    SUNY Distinguished Service Professor
    Department of Political Science

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