By Anjali Athavaley, Pervaiz Shallwani, Sharon Adarlo, Alison Fox and Heather Haddon 
 
 UPDATED | Despite last-minute efforts by officials in New York and New Jersey to help storm victims vote, confusion, lack of electricity and long lines still plagued polling sites throughout the area Tuesday. 
 
 To prevent disenfranchising voters, shuttle buses were running in hard-hit areas, voting locations were combined and Gov. Andrew Cuomo signed an executive ordering allowing storm victims to vote outside of their district Monday night. Still, problems arose as soon as some locations opened. 
 
 On the playground of Scholars’ Academy on Beach 104th St. in Rockaway Park, several voting locations from the western end of the Rockaway peninsula were consolidated into one tent-covered polling site. Problems started immediately, as poll workers arrived to find that generators, heaters and lights were nowhere to be found. 
 
 “It just got a little chaotic,” said pollworker Estel Lyons. “We had it planned the best we could and there were a few glitches.” 
 
 Zuma Press People gather to vote at a makeshift tent, which is used as a polling station in Rockway. 
 
 Marie Howley of Rockaway Park used a rental car to drive in from Rockville Centre on Long Island, where she has been staying with her daughter. Her only complaint was lack of sufficient light in the tents. “It’s dark in there,” she said. “You had to hold up the card to see. I think I filled in all the holes correctly.” 
 
 In hard-hit Hoboken, various snafus caused long waits for voters to cast ballots at a combined polling location for two districts on Grand Street. The doors of the Multi Service Center of Hoboken weren’t open at 6 a.m., poll workers struggled to find a key to open the operational voting machines and voters were told they might have to cast paper ballots, said Joe Maziarski, a 27-year-old Hoboken resident at the polling site. 
 
 “People weren’t really happy with that idea,” said Maziarski, a TV producer. 
 
 The machines were eventually opened but the tables lacked signs directing people to their appropriate polling district, and voters took it upon themselves to guide people, Maziarski said. “It was very disorganized. You couldn’t tell who was running the organization,” he said. 
 
 Sandy even threw some kinks in the voting process in parts of New York City where the lights stayed on throughout the storm. 
 
 In Park Slope, voters who usually cast their ballots at John Jay High School, now serving as an shelter for storm evacuees, were directed to PS 282, more than a half a mile away. Some residents had received fliers passed out on Monday by Assembyman James F. Brennan redirecting them to the new site. 
 
 Lines stretched outside the school and around the block. But displaced voters got a break and were directed to a separate entrance where lines were shorter. Those who already knew their election district were processed quickly, in about half an hour. 
 
 It was unclear if the shorter lines were because of lower turnout from residents redirected from their usual polling places. 
 
 At the Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis High School in midtown Manhattan, polling workers said that around noon, they had run out of affidavit ballot envelopes needed for voters who weren’t registered at the polling site. 
 
 Jon Protas/The Wall Street Journal A double line of voters stretches around the block as people wait to vote on West End Ave at 95th street in Manhattan. 
 
 “Governor Cuomo sits up there in Albany and signs an executive order, but he’s not in the trenches,” said coordinator Fred Kelly. 
 
 Another Board of Elections worker said some voters had submitted ballots without envelopes, meaning their votes wouldn’t count. 
 
 Voters were instructed to try other polling places in midtown. “I figured there would be a long line, but I thought I’d be able to vote here,” said 22-year-old James Bedell, who lives in East Village but works as a bank analyst in midtown. He said of the confusion at the high school, “A lot of people don’t even know what they’re supposed to do.” 
 
 At some sites, voting was going smoothly. Voters have no wait time to use a polling booth at one Teterboro site that is accepting votes from displaced Moonachie residents. 
 
 Eleanor Madison, 77, displaced by the storm, said her town had shuttles to Teterboro so they could vote. 
 
 “We had calls from our police department,” she said about the voting change. “But not everybody is getting the calls. People have told me,” she said, guessing their numbers were not listed or registered. 
 
 “They are calling people but I say they should go around with a megaphone,” she said. 
 
 Dale Birnbaum, a small-business owner from South Brunswick who has been displaced by Sandy, struggled to figure out how to vote electronically. She couldn’t easily find information on the state’s website, and resorted to contacting friends on Facebook. She eventually contacted the Middlesex County clerk’s office for an application, but had yet to receive a response Tuesday. 
 
 “I want to vote so badly,” said Birnhaum, who is staying with her daughter in West New York and is going to try to vote provisionally in Hudson County. “I have local people I would love to vote for but I just want to vote for the president.” 
 
 Associated Press Poll worker Lisa Amico, right, helps voters by flashlight in a dark and unheated tent serving as a polling site in the Midland Beach section of Staten Island. 
 
 New Jersey residents who chose to vote electronically were facing confusion and uncertainty whether their votes would be counted. 
 
 Kate Supple, a 29-year-old Jersey City resident who was displaced by Sandy and staying in Manhattan, emailed her application to the Hudson County clerk Monday. Supple said she received a brief email acknowledgement of her application but has yet to receiver her ballot, and was worried that her vote wouldn’t be counted. 
 
 Poll worker Lisa Amico, right, helps voters by flashlight in a dark and unheated tent serving as a polling site in the Midland Beach section of Staten Island. 
 
 Several confused voters showed up Tuesday morning at PS 288 in Coney Island. A sign posted on the gate told them “school closed. No voting here.” A smaller sign directed people to 3001 west 1st street, 25 blocks away. 
 
 Martha Gonzalez, 23, showed up to vote but quickly realized she couldn’t do so here. “My Internet is down in my household,” said Gonzalez, who lost her job at a liquor store that was damaged in the storm. “I thought it was here.” 
 
 William Soto, 54, rode his bicycle to PS 288 with the hope of voting. When he saw the sign the retired mechanic got ready to turn right back around and go home. 
 
 “Obama, I’m sorry, I’m not going there,” he said about the new polling location. “It’s too much for me.” 
 
 Lines were long but the mood was subdued and civil at Bethel Baptist Church in Boerum Hill, Brooklyn. The area was largely untouched by the storm. 
 
 Several people had heard of Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s executive order allowing voters in nine counties affected by Sandy, including New York City, Westchester and Long Island, to vote at any site by affidavit ballot and wondered allowed if it might help them skip 45-minute waits to vote. But no one appeared to leave to try their luck. 
 
 – with Jennifer Smith 
 
 See more photos of New York and New Jersey residents voting in areas affected by superstorm Sandy. ||||| CLOSE President Obama thanked his supporters, spoke about unity and said he wants to work with Republicans and Democrats to move the country forward. He also said he plans to meet with Mitt Romney to discuss how they can work together. (Nov. 7) AP 
 
 President Obama is heading back to the White House after a hard fought race. His second term will be focused on the economy, job growth and heading off the looming fiscal crisis. 
 
 President Obama and family arrive on stage in Chicago after winning the 2012 U.S. presidential election. (Photo: Saul Loeb, AFP/Getty Images) Story Highlights Wins in key battleground states, but a clear mandate? 
 
 Obama vows to work with GOP to solve deficit, other woes 
 
 Economy showing some signs of picking up steam 
 
 President Obama won re-election in the USA's costliest and perhaps most bitterly contested national campaign in recent memory. 
 
 A second term should guarantee Obama's signature legislative achievement, health care reform and coverage for millions of uninsured Americans. Yet four more years will not be smooth sailing. Obama faces a still anemic economic recovery, stubbornly high unemployment and a looming fiscal crisis. 
 
 With Republicans retaining control of the House and Democrats adding to their advantage in the Senate, Obama also may be plagued by the same political gridlock that has sharply divided the electorate and hampered the president's agenda for solving the country's woes. And gridlock could thwart his efforts to negotiate a new fiscal plan. 
 
 Obama and Congress have been unable to find common ground on tax and spending cuts. Obama wants to preserve low income tax rates for all except high-income Americans, spending more on public works and giving targeted tax breaks to businesses. 
 
 GRAPHIC: Five reasons Obama won; Five reasons Romney lost 
 
 If no agreement is reached by year's end, massive cuts in defense and domestic spending will kick in, as will sharp, across-the-board tax increases. Economists warn that could push the economy off a fiscal cliff and back into recession. 
 
 New Mexico Democrats Clint Milhollin, left, and his boyfriend, Will Toledo, celebrate Obama's victory the Embassy Suites in Albuquerque, N.M. (Photo: Craig Fritz, AP) 
 
 CLOSE A throng of supporters of President Barack Obama hugged and cheered outside the White House when Obama won re-election to a second term. (Nov. 7) AP 
 
 Francis Lun, managing director of Lyncean Holdings in Hong Kong, said an Obama victory means an extension of the status quo. 
 
 
 
 "Nothing will change. We will have ultra-low interest rates, a $1 trillion deficit and quantitative easing," Lun said. (Federal Reserve Chief Ben) Bernanke "will keep his job as Fed chairman. As for the fiscal cliff, the president will do something to minimize the effect of tax increases and spending cuts." 
 
 Tuesday exit polls of voters in key states showed the economy remains a top issue among voters. 
 
 INTERACTIVE: Exit polls provide voter insight 
 
 "Business is rough. Everybody wants someone to blame," said Frank Robles, 45, who employs 15 at his North Las Vegas shoe store. Yet Robles supported Obama, saying he's not responsible for the worst of the economic crisis: "People need to give him a chance." 
 
 Signs point to an improving economy. While the unemployment rate ticked up to 7.9% in October, employers added 171,000 jobs in October. Hiring also was stronger in August and September than first thought. Yet a separate Labor Department report issued Tuesday said job openings dropped by 100,000 in September to 3.56 million, lowest in five months, data that suggest hiring will remain modest. 
 
 Gasoline prices have been dropping sharply — now $3.46 a gallon — a drop of 35 cents from a month ago. Cheaper gas typically spurs consumer spending, although prices typically fall in the fall. 
 
 Stocks — which historically perform better with a Democrat in the White House — rose Tuesday and U.S. stock futures were up heading into Wednesday's market opening. Overseas markets also were up in early Wednesday trading. 
 
 Yet overall economic policy needs to change, experts say. And that starts with bipartisan agreement in Washington. 
 
 Senate and House leaders seemed conciliatory. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell said Tuesday's vote showed that the electorate had neither endorsed the "failures or excesses of the president's first term," but rather have given him more time to finish the job. "To the extent he wants to move to the political center, which is where the work gets done in a divided government, we'll be there to meet him half way," McConnell said. 
 
 Said Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid: "Now that the election is over, it's time to put politics aside and work together to find solutions." 
 
 In his victory speech early Wednesday morning from Chicago, Obama said he was willing to work across party lines to tackle problems. "Tonight you voted for action, not politics as usual,'' he told a partisan crowd. "You elected us to focus on your jobs, not ours. And in the coming weeks and months, I am looking forward to reaching out and working with leaders of both parties to meet the challenges we can only solve together. Reducing our deficit. Reforming our tax code. Fixing our immigration system. Freeing ourselves from foreign oil. We've got more work to do." 
 
 Contributing: Julie Schmit, Associated Press. 
 
 Read or Share this story: http://usat.ly/VPz3tR ||||| Massachusetts voters flocked to the polls today, drawn by the chance to vote in sharply contested races for president and US Senate. Many precincts reported long lines and steady turnout. 
 
 After long, intense campaigns, voters said they were thrilled, and more than a little relieved, that Election Day was finally at hand — and they were eager to have their say. 
 
 In Waltham, where voters began arriving at 6:30 a.m., turnout was strong. 
 
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 “It’s wonderful,” said Georgie Hallock, an election warden. “And the number of absentee ballots has been fantastic.” 
 
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 Jilda Diorio, 67, voted Republican. It was “time for a change as far as the presidency goes,” she said. And she liked how US Senator Scott Brown, who is being challenged by Democrat Elizabeth Warren, “worked across the aisle.” 
 
 Terry Goodridge, on the other hand, voted Democratic. Obama had “accomplished a lot,” she said. As for Romney, “we’ve had our fill of him,” she said. 
 
 In Copley Square around noon, the line to vote stretched out of the Boston Public Library and onto the sidewalk. Jim Riordan, 55, said he had waited in line two hours to cast his ballot. 
 
 “It’s just a total mess downstairs,” he said. “It’s usually bad, but this is worse.” 
 
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 Riordan, an independent, said he voted for Obama, who by his reckoning “did a good job,” and Warren. 
 
 Sarah Godfrey, 33, said she planned to split her ticket by voting for Romney for president and Warren for Senate. 
 
 “I’m just not happy with the situation right now, and if things aren’t going well, it doesn’t make sense to vote for the incumbent,” said Godfrey, who voted for Obama in 2008. 
 
 “I’m not saying it’s necessarily Obama’s fault, but maybe we can give somebody else a shot this time,” she said. 
 
 As of 3 p.m., 148,133 people had cast their vote in Boston, representing 38.26 percent of registered voters, according to the city. Turnout is slightly lower than during the last presidential election. As of 3 p.m. on Election Day in 2008, 152,780 people had voted, which was about 40.11 percent of registered voters. 
 
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 Statewide, officials predict that as many as 3.2 million people could vote, surpassing the record set in 2008. 
 
 In Belmont, a cheer went up outside the Beech Street Center after Romney, a former Massachusetts governor, and his wife, Ann, cast their votes in their hometown. 
 
 “I think you know,’’ was Romney’s reply when reporters asked for whom he had voted for president. Romney, who drew several hundred supporters as well as backers of President Obama, said he was feeling “very good, very good.” 
 
 Wearing his signature barncoat and accompanied by his wife and one of his two daughters, Brown voted in Wrentham around 7:30 a.m. He said he voted for himself, and that he expected the election, which is considered to be extremely close by experts, will have a clear winner by 10 p.m. tonight. 
 
 “It’s going to be a close election and I look forward to the results,” Brown told reporters. 
 
 Some 200 people were already in line waiting to vote when Brown arrived. 
 
 “I’ve never seen it this crowded before,’’ Brown said. “And I’ve been here for 25 years.’’ 
 
 In Cambridge, Warren cast her vote around 7:45 a.m., and went to the polling place accompanied by her husband and granddaughter. 
 
 “This campaign was never about me,” Warren told reporters after voting. “This campaign was about all of us, about all the people who invested in it, all the people who truly believed that if you got out there and worked together you can make a difference.” 
 
 Globe correspondent Johanna Kaiser and John Ellement of the Globe staff contributed to this report ||||| via @NewspaperVideo's Twitter 
 
 via @CBSMiami's Twitter 
 
 via @LizRoldanCBS4's Twitter 
 
 via @AdamBeasley's Twitter 
 
 via @doug_hanks Twitter 
 
 
 
 
 
 Update, 10:30 a.m. There's at least one neighborhood in Miami immune to hours-long voting waits: South Beach. 
 
 
 
 
 
 Perhaps most voters cast absentees or early ballots. More likely: most neighbors around here are either sleeping off a night at Mansion, baking in the sun completely oblivious to the fact that it's Election Day, or are German DJs who can't vote in the States. 
 
 
 
 
 
 Either way, this was the scene at Fienberg Fisher Elementary School: 
 
 
 
 
 
 photo by Tim Elfrink 
 
 Inside the doors, about 15 voters were filling out ballots in voting booths, on folding chairs or sitting along the walls. Total time to cast a ballot: About 15 minutes. 
 
 Life is good in SoBe. 
 
 
 
 
 
 Update 10:40 It's a world of difference in Edgewater, where New Times web editor Jose Duran found a three-hour line outside of Cameron House: 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Update 12:09 New Times fellow Jon Tayler reports from Trinity Cathedral Hall at 14th St. and Biscayne Boulevard, where the line stretches out of the church and well into the parking lot. 
 
 
 
 
 
 No poll workers have given any official wait times, but Tayler estimates the full wait will easily take two hours. 
 
 
 
 
 
 photo by Jon Tayler 
 
 At 7 a.m. this morning, 829 polling sites opened in schools, storefronts and churches around Miami-Dade County. And despite the fact that almost half of likely Florida voters have already cast ballots, imposing lines quickly formed, snaking out front doors and down sidewalks -- and forcing some to abandon their election plans so they could get to work.Still, election officials say presidential voting is running as smoothly as possible so far. "We're going to see long lines because voters are enthusiastic," Christina White, deputy supervisor at Miami-Dade County Elections tells Riptide.Wait times have varied wildly around the county so far, based on online reports. Thes Kathleen McGregory reports on Twitter that some voters cast ballots in less than half an hour at City Hall in Coconut Grove.But photos from Liberty City to Miami Shores to Sunny Isles show long lines stretching out of the polling places.Thanks to an absurdly long ballot -- the handiwork of Florida's GOP-dominated Legislature, which tacked on 11 lengthy constitutional amendments -- voters can't just pop in, fill in a bubble for Mitt or Barry, and then move on.But White says early reports that some poll places were running short on ballots or on voting booths were incorrect, adding she's heard no reports so far of "major issues.""We've deployed the maximum equipment possible at every site," she says. "In many places, we have space limitations."Here are some scenes culled from Twitter:Have any election day horror stories? Share them in the comments or tweet us @MiamiNewTimes. We'll keep this post updated as voting continues today. ||||| by Joy Lin | November 06, 2012 
 
 With his vote cast, Joe Biden once again flirted with the possibility of another presidential race. 
 
 The vice president returned to his home state of Delaware to vote on Election Day, and spoke to reporters outside the polling center at Alexis DuPont High School in Greenville. 
 
 "Is this the last time you're going to vote for yourself?" a reporter asked. 
 
 "Oh, I don't think so," he replied coyly. 
 
 The nation's oldest president was Ronald Reagan, elected to the Oval Office at age 69. Biden turns 70 on Nov 20, but it appears age is no barrier for a man who was elected to Senate at the age of 29. 
 
 In his last campaign speech before Election Day, Biden spoke like a man considering a run in 2016. He discarded his attack dog role and wrapped up his remarks with a call for the nation to unify. 
 
 "It's time we come together and realize the great potential of this great country," he said in Richmond. "It's time to replace unyielding ideology with principled compromise. Ladies and gentlemen, I believe most Democrats and Republicans are prepared to do just that."
– Americans flocked to the polls this morning, forming long lines in many places around the country. USA Today counted 75 people in line at one DC polling place. Here are some of the stories filtering in nationally: Some problems have already cropped up in Virginia, the Richmond Times-Dispatch reports. One poll worker was caught telling voters they needed a registration card and picture ID, when the law only requires one of the two. Several problems with voting machines also cropped up, in one case forcing voters to be turned away for up to an hour. The lines were also long in Massachusetts, where Mitt Romney cast his ballot today, the Boston Globe reports. When asked who he voted for, Romney replied, "I think you know." Scott Brown, meanwhile, marveled at the lines at his polling place. "I've never seen it this crowded before," he said, "and I've been here for 25 years." Joe Biden caused a bit of a stir after casting his ballot in Delaware, when a reporter asked if this was the last time he would vote for himself. "Oh, I don't think so," he replied, which Fox News is taking as a hint that he might run for president again. In New York and New Jersey, confusion reigned, the Wall Street Journal reports. Power outages forced some polling places to make on-the-fly changes, like opening voting machines and switching to paper ballots. "It was very disorganized. You couldn't tell who was running the organization," says one Hoboken voter. The Miami New Times is reporting "imposing lines," even though half of likely Florida voters have already voted—adding that, because Florida's GOP has put 11 lengthy constitutional amendments on the ballot, voting can take a while.