Poor weather doesn’t dissuade voting in noncompetitive elections – not even Hurricane Sandy did in 2012

Rational choice theories of voter behavior suggest that factors such as bad weather and a busy schedule should discourage voting in noncompetitive elections. Considering voter turnout in New York City in 2012 – in the immediate aftermath of Hurricane Sandy – Viviana Rivera-Burgos, Narayani Lasala-Blanco and Robert Y. Shapiro find that personal motivation to vote can override minor and even major costs of voting, even in noncompetitive elections.