Virginia adjusts absentee voting due to storm

After canceling absentee voting in nine counties on Monday and Tuesday due to the impact of Superstorm Sandy, Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell on Tuesday asked localities hurt by the storm to extend their absentee voting hours.

The absentee period is scheduled to end on Saturday, but the governor urged voters to check with local general registrar offices to find out how the hours have changed in their respective areas.

The counties include several in the greater Washington metropolitan area, including Arlington County and Fairfax County--two counties that turned out four years ago for candidate Barack Obama in big numbers.

The Northern Virginia area had gusts of winds that topped 65 miles per hour, and more than 280 roads across the state were closed due to downed trees and flooding. As of Tuesday afternoon, 114,000 residents statewide were without power, according to the governor's office.

Furthermore, two storm-related traffic fatalities were confirmed by the Chief Medical Examiner.

The state's Board of Elections named other counties on Tuesday's list of closed absentee voting: Accomack County, Fauquier County, Loudoun County, Westmoreland County, Wise County, and Tazewell County--the last of which experienced more than eight inches of snow this week.

Virginia is considered one of the closest swing states this election cycle, and both the Obama and Romney campaigns canceled events in the state because of the storm.

To vote absentee in Virginia, one must meet one of 19 eligibility requirements.