U.S. won't delay November elections, official says [View All]

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http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/N13672690.htm

WASHINGTON, July 13 (Reuters) - The United States will not cancel or suspend the presidential election this November in the event of a terror attack or other catastrophic event, the government's top elections official said on Tuesday.

Individual states may suspend or reschedule elections if disaster strikes, but that would not change voting in other states, said DeForest Soaries, chairman of the U.S. Election Assistance Commission.

"I can't conceive of any circumstances under which a presidential election could be postponed or canceled," Soaries told reporters after a commission hearing.

Newsweek reported on Sunday that Bush administration officials were looking at what legal steps would be needed to delay the election in case of an attack.

The United States has never postponed a presidential election even during national crises like the Civil War.

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