October 06, 2016, 03:41 pm
Clinton wants Florida early voting deadline extended
By Jessie Hellmann
Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton's campaign called on Florida to extend its voter registration in anticipation of the damaging effects of Hurricane Matthew.
In a press call with reporters Thursday, Clinton campaign manager Robby Mook said he hopes Florida extends its voter registration deadline past Oct. 11.
The Category 4 storm could render parts of Florida "uninhabitable for weeks," the National Weather Service warned Thursday, and Gov. Rick Scott has urged evacuation of areas in the hurricane's path, warning, "This storm could kill you."
President Obama declared a state of emergency in Florida ahead of the storm.
Mook also used the call to downplay criticism that Clinton's campaign was capitalizing on the hurricane by buying ad space in Florida on the Weather Channel.
"We were in the process of buying television time nationwide on hundreds of different media outlets," Mook said.
"Since the storm has clearly become very serious, we have asked the Weather Channel to roll back that buy until the storm has concluded.
"We do not think the voters of Florida need this election to get mixed up with their efforts to get information on this storm."
Politico, citing a source tracking TV ad buys, reported earlier Thursday that the campaign planned to spend $63,000 on spots to run on the Weather Channel starting that day.
A Clinton aide said the campaign has been advertising on the channel all year as well, and Politico noted that the Trump campaign has also run ads there this year.
But Republicans criticized Clinton's latest reported ad buy, saying it could cause voter backlash in Florida and other states in the hurricane’s path.
“Pulling these ads after getting caught won't cut it. @HillaryClinton should apologize for using storm for votes,” Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus tweeted.
http://thehill.com/blogs/ballot-box/presidential-races/299682-clinton-campaign-hopes-florida-extends-voter-registration
