But that isn’t happening. The weather will mostly be dry and warm for a vast majority of the country — good news for those who waited to brave the outdoor lines on Election Day.
And possibly good news for Democrats.
Weather can play a significant role in voting behavior, with lousy weather generally suppressing turnout.
Research has shown it could have swung a couple of elections.
“In close elections, the weather becomes one of many factors that can be determinative,” the authors of the study published in The Journal of Politics said. “It is clear from our results that Republicans benefit from precipitation on Election Day.”
However, in 2016, President Trump also won other battleground states, like Pennsylvania, with good weather.
But if the 2007 study is right, and poor weather favors Republicans, Democrats may want to take the advice of the study’s authors: “To offset these Republican gains, Democrats must take action to counteract the increased cost of voting among their supporters. Otherwise, Democrats may wish to ‘pray for dry weather.'”
Where weather could make an impact
There are a few places where weather could have a slight impact Tuesday.
A clipper — a fast-moving low pressure weather system — will track through the Northeast on Tuesday. It will bring some light snow during the morning hours from upstate New York to New Hampshire. There may even be a little snow in southern Maine.
“The snow will be lake enhanced, off of Lake Erie and Lake Ontario as winds blow in an easterly direction off the lakes,” CNN meteorologist Haley Brinks says. “The highest chance for snow will be in the morning hours, clearing through the evening.”
The clipper will usher in some colder air across the region with temperatures running 10 to 15 degrees below normal in New England with highs in the 30s and 40s.
The only other place in the country with yucky weather will be the Pacific Northwest. A system will bring rain and gusty winds to western Washington state. But let’s face it, folks, they are kind of pros at doing things in the rain.
Temperatures there will be near normal with highs in the 50s.
Hawaii will have pleasant weather, particularly in the morning hours. “Trade winds will strengthen to locally moderate levels Tuesday,” the National Weather Service said, “boosting cloud cover and windward shower activity over the eastern half of the island chain.”
Much of Alaska will be 10 to 20 degrees below the average temperature Tuesday, but nothing they can’t handle. Skies will be mostly clear with the northwestern part of the state seeing accumulating snow through the day.
For the other — roughly three-fourths the country — it will be a clear, beautiful, above-average autumn day.
Temperatures across the Southwest will be 15 to 20 degrees above normal with highs in the 80s and 90s.
Across the Northern Plains and Rockies, temperatures will run 20 to 30 degrees above normal with highs in the 60s and 70s.
The Southern and Central Plains will also see above-average temperatures with highs in the 70s and 80s.
From the Midwest down into the Southeast, temperatures will be near average. Highs in the Midwest will be in the 50s and 60s, and the Southeast will see highs in the 60s and 70s.
While the weather map may look a bit more red than usual, it isn’t necessarily a sign the electoral map will be the same.