KING JESUS IS COMING FOR US ANY TIME NOW. THE RAPTURE. BE PREPARED TO GO.
STORMS HURRICANES-TORNADOES
LUKE 21:25-26
25 And there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars; and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity;(MASS CONFUSION) the sea and the waves roaring;(FIERCE WINDS)
26 Men’s hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth: for the powers of heaven shall be shaken.(FROM QUAKES,NUKES ETC)
THE FIRST JUDGEMENT OF THE EARTH STARTED WITH WATER-IT ONLY MAKES SENSE THE LAST GENERATION WILL BE HAVING FLOODING
GENESIS 7:6-12
6 And Noah was six hundred years old when the flood of waters was upon the earth.
7 And Noah went in, and his sons, and his wife, and his sons’ wives with him, into the ark, because of the waters of the flood.
8 Of clean beasts, and of beasts that are not clean, and of fowls, and of every thing that creepeth upon the earth,
9 There went in two and two unto Noah into the ark, the male and the female, as God had commanded Noah.
10 And it came to pass after seven days, that the waters of the flood were upon the earth.
11 In the six hundredth year of Noah’s life, in the second month, the seventeenth day of the month, the same day were all the fountains of the great deep broken up, and the windows of heaven were opened.
12 And the rain was upon the earth forty days and forty nights.
GOD PROMISED BY A RAINBOW-THE EARTH WOULD NEVER BE DESTROYED TOTALLY WITH A FLOOD AGAIN.BUT FLOODIING IS A SIGN OF JUDGEMENT.
MATTHEW 16:1-4
1 The Pharisees also with the Sadducees came, and tempting desired him that he would shew them a sign from heaven.
2 He answered and said unto them, When it is evening, ye say, It will be fair weather: for the sky is red.
3 And in the morning, It will be foul weather to day: for the sky is red and lowring. O ye hypocrites, ye can discern the face of the sky; but can ye not discern the signs of the times?
4 A wicked and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign; and there shall no sign be given unto it, but the sign of the prophet Jonas. And he left them, and departed.
DAY 1 HURRICANE SANDY UPDATES
http://israndjer.blogspot.ca/2012/10/updates-on-hurricane-sandy.html
DAY 2 HURRICANE SANDY UPDATES
http://israndjer.blogspot.ca/2012/10/no-ny-trading-today-again.html
DAY 3 HURRICANE SANDY UPDATES
http://israndjer.blogspot.ca/2012/10/day-3-hurricane-sandy-update.html
DAY 4 HURRICANE SANDY UPDATES
http://israndjer.blogspot.ca/2012/11/nov-112-day-4-hurricane-sandy-update.html
DAY 5 HURRICANE SANDY UPDATES
http://israndjer.blogspot.ca/2012/11/day-5-hurricane-sandy-update.html
DAY 6 HURRICANE SANDY UPDATES
http://israndjer.blogspot.ca/2012/11/day-6-hurricane-sandy-update.html
DAY 7 HURRICANE SANDY UPDATES
http://israndjer.blogspot.ca/2012/11/day-7-hurricane-sandy-update.html
DAY 8 HURRICANE SANDY UPDATES
http://israndjer.blogspot.ca/2012/11/day-8-hurricane-sandy-update.html
DAY 9 HURRICANE SANDY UPDATES
http://israndjer.blogspot.ca/2012/11/day-9-hurricane-sandy-update.html
DAY 10 HURRICANE SANDY UPDATES-HAPPENINGS
STORMS HURRICANES-TORNADOES
LUKE 21:25-26
25 And there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars; and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity;(MASS CONFUSION) the sea and the waves roaring;(FIERCE WINDS)
26 Men’s hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth: for the powers of heaven shall be shaken.(FROM QUAKES,NUKES ETC)
THE FIRST JUDGEMENT OF THE EARTH STARTED WITH WATER-IT ONLY MAKES SENSE THE LAST GENERATION WILL BE HAVING FLOODING
GENESIS 7:6-12
6 And Noah was six hundred years old when the flood of waters was upon the earth.
7 And Noah went in, and his sons, and his wife, and his sons’ wives with him, into the ark, because of the waters of the flood.
8 Of clean beasts, and of beasts that are not clean, and of fowls, and of every thing that creepeth upon the earth,
9 There went in two and two unto Noah into the ark, the male and the female, as God had commanded Noah.
10 And it came to pass after seven days, that the waters of the flood were upon the earth.
11 In the six hundredth year of Noah’s life, in the second month, the seventeenth day of the month, the same day were all the fountains of the great deep broken up, and the windows of heaven were opened.
12 And the rain was upon the earth forty days and forty nights.
GOD PROMISED BY A RAINBOW-THE EARTH WOULD NEVER BE DESTROYED TOTALLY WITH A FLOOD AGAIN.BUT FLOODIING IS A SIGN OF JUDGEMENT.
MATTHEW 16:1-4
1 The Pharisees also with the Sadducees came, and tempting desired him that he would shew them a sign from heaven.
2 He answered and said unto them, When it is evening, ye say, It will be fair weather: for the sky is red.
3 And in the morning, It will be foul weather to day: for the sky is red and lowring. O ye hypocrites, ye can discern the face of the sky; but can ye not discern the signs of the times?
4 A wicked and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign; and there shall no sign be given unto it, but the sign of the prophet Jonas. And he left them, and departed.
DAY 1 HURRICANE SANDY UPDATES
http://israndjer.blogspot.ca/2012/10/updates-on-hurricane-sandy.html
DAY 2 HURRICANE SANDY UPDATES
http://israndjer.blogspot.ca/2012/10/no-ny-trading-today-again.html
DAY 3 HURRICANE SANDY UPDATES
http://israndjer.blogspot.ca/2012/10/day-3-hurricane-sandy-update.html
DAY 4 HURRICANE SANDY UPDATES
http://israndjer.blogspot.ca/2012/11/nov-112-day-4-hurricane-sandy-update.html
DAY 5 HURRICANE SANDY UPDATES
http://israndjer.blogspot.ca/2012/11/day-5-hurricane-sandy-update.html
DAY 6 HURRICANE SANDY UPDATES
http://israndjer.blogspot.ca/2012/11/day-6-hurricane-sandy-update.html
DAY 7 HURRICANE SANDY UPDATES
http://israndjer.blogspot.ca/2012/11/day-7-hurricane-sandy-update.html
DAY 8 HURRICANE SANDY UPDATES
http://israndjer.blogspot.ca/2012/11/day-8-hurricane-sandy-update.html
DAY 9 HURRICANE SANDY UPDATES
http://israndjer.blogspot.ca/2012/11/day-9-hurricane-sandy-update.html
DAY 10 HURRICANE SANDY UPDATES-HAPPENINGS
New York, New Jersey order evacuations ahead of new storm
By Michelle Nichols and Daniel Trotta | Reuters – 10:30AM NOV 7,12
NEW YORK (Reuters) - New York and New Jersey ordered the evacuation of nursing homes and low-lying coastal areas already devastated by deadly Superstorm Sandy as a smaller but still powerful Nor'easter approached from the Atlantic Ocean.New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg
closed parks and beaches and temporarily halted outdoor construction
ahead of the storm, which was pelting the Washington area with ice
pellets on Wednesday and whipping up seas as high as 7.5 feet about 20
miles off New York's JFK airport, AccuWeather reported.Airlines canceled 770 flights into and out of the New York area, FlightAware.com said.Thousands of people in the U.S. Northeast lost their
homes and more than 621,000 homes and businesses remained without power
due to Sandy, testing nerves ahead of the Nor'easter.Forecasters said the nasty weather was headed for New
York and New Jersey, which were struggling to recover after former hurricane Sandy killed at least 120 in the United States and Canada when it struck on October 29 as a rare hybrid storm.After Sandy killed 40 people in New York City,
Bloomberg ordered evacuations of low-lying, hard-hit areas such as the
Rockaways section of Queens and the south shore of Staten Island.
Residents of at least two coastal New Jersey towns were also told to leave.The Nor'easter threatened inland areas with powerful
winds that could blow down trees and limbs weakened from Sandy, the
National Weather Service said while forecasting a wintry mix of rain and
snow from northern Maryland to central New England.The Federal Emergency Management Agency said it was
working with state and local authorities and was "ready to deploy
additional resources if needed to respond to the Nor'easter."Authorities hurried to clear tens of thousands of tons
of debris from Sandy amid fears it could produce deadly projectiles."I'm really concerned these freak weather events are
going to become a permanent feature in this new world of climate
change," said Corey Birtles, 37, an analyst who lost power in his
Manhattan apartment for four days after Sandy. "These events do seem to
be more severe and more regular in recent times."President Barack Obama won wide praise for the U.S.
government's response to Sandy, which may have helped him win
re-election Tuesday in a close race against Republican challenger Mitt
Romney.Bloomberg endorsed Obama for a second term after Sandy
struck, citing his record on climate change. Regardless of whether
climate change was to blame for a rise in severe weather events, it
should compel leaders to act on the issue, the mayor said.Sandy struck one week before the U.S. elections,
leading New Jersey to take the uncommon step of allowing storm-displaced
voters to cast ballots by email or fax, while New Yorkers were able to
vote at any polling place by presenting an affidavit.Makeshift polling places were also set up, but some voters still faced chaotic scenes and long lines.
NEAR-FREEZING TEMPERATURES
On the devastated New Jersey shore, a summer tourist haven where Sandy's storm surge swallowed whole neighborhoods and pushed entire homes across the street, the town of Brick issued a mandatory evacuation order for waterfront neighborhoods ahead of Wednesday's storm. Middletown also ordered evacuations.
Bloomberg ordered the evacuation on Tuesday of more than 600 people from four healthcare centers in the ravaged Rockaways.New York City's evacuations were designed to coincide with high tides when the storm surge would be highest and were not as widespread as the mandatory evacuations around the city before Sandy.With overnight temperatures dropping to near freezing, the city said it would deliver 1,500 space heaters on Wednesday to elderly residents in the Rockaways who have power, but no heat.Many gas stations still lacked electricity or gasoline, and motorists endured long lines at the stations that were open. Fuel rationing was in force in New Jersey, where some residents hired school children to stand in line with gas cans.Authorities were due to reopen the Holland Tunnel linking Manhattan to New Jersey under the Hudson River, which will help alleviate massive traffic jams and overwhelming crowds on public transport systems that have yet to fully recover from Sandy.
(Editing by Vicki Allen)
NEAR-FREEZING TEMPERATURES
On the devastated New Jersey shore, a summer tourist haven where Sandy's storm surge swallowed whole neighborhoods and pushed entire homes across the street, the town of Brick issued a mandatory evacuation order for waterfront neighborhoods ahead of Wednesday's storm. Middletown also ordered evacuations.
Bloomberg ordered the evacuation on Tuesday of more than 600 people from four healthcare centers in the ravaged Rockaways.New York City's evacuations were designed to coincide with high tides when the storm surge would be highest and were not as widespread as the mandatory evacuations around the city before Sandy.With overnight temperatures dropping to near freezing, the city said it would deliver 1,500 space heaters on Wednesday to elderly residents in the Rockaways who have power, but no heat.Many gas stations still lacked electricity or gasoline, and motorists endured long lines at the stations that were open. Fuel rationing was in force in New Jersey, where some residents hired school children to stand in line with gas cans.Authorities were due to reopen the Holland Tunnel linking Manhattan to New Jersey under the Hudson River, which will help alleviate massive traffic jams and overwhelming crowds on public transport systems that have yet to fully recover from Sandy.
(Editing by Vicki Allen)
Fear of looting grips NYC as new storm threatens
By | Associated Press – 12:09AM NOV 7,12
NEW YORK (AP) — Richard Chan prowled around his cold, dark Staten Island home with knives and a sword to protect it from thieves, standing his ground as another East Coast storm threatened and police went through neighborhoods with loudspeakers warning people to get out."I still have some valuables. I just can't leave it," he said Tuesday. "I just don't want to lose my stuff to some dirtbag."While city officials strongly encouraged storm-ravaged communities to
seek higher ground before Wednesday's nor'easter, Chan was among a
group who adamantly refused to leave, choosing to stick close to the
belongings they have left.
Since the superstorm made landfall more than a week ago, killing 40 people in the city, more than 100 in 10 states and leaving millions without power, police said overall crime has actually gone down, not up. There are few reports of looting storm-damaged homes.But Alex Ocasio wasn't convinced. The nursing home worker planned to ride out the latest storm in his first-floor Rockaway apartment — even after seeing cars float by his front door during Sandy.As the water receded, men dressed in dark clothes broke down the door and were surprised to find him and other residents inside. "They tried to say they were rescue workers, then took off," he said.He put up a handmade sign — "Have gun. Will shoot U" — outside his apartment and started using a bed frame to barricade the door. He has gas, so he keeps on the oven and boils water to stay warm at night. "It gets a little humid, but it's not bad," he said. "I'm staying. Nothing can be worse than what happened last week."In the Rockaways, one of the worst-hit areas, nightfall brings with it fears of looting, burglaries — even armed robberies. The idyllic seaside boardwalk was in ruins, streets were covered with sand and cars scattered like trash."You can't go there after dark anymore," said 57-year-old construction worker William Gavin, pointing to a battered, lower-income section of his beachfront community. "It's a good way to get a gun pulled on you."Earlier this week, a retired police officer fired warning shots at someone trying to break into her home in the middle of the night, said Sean Kavanagh."I don't blame her," said Kavanagh, also a retired officer. "I would have done the same."Kavanagh says he's staying home, in part to protect it. "I leave and anything can happen," he said. "It's open season."Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly said it wasn't wise to stay put."I think your life is more important than property," he said.Kelly said police have arrested 123 people citywide since the storm blew in last week, 54 burglary arrests and 41 others stemming from gas line disputes. Police said the majority were in areas suffering from the storm.
"You would think, under the circumstances, you would see much more," Kelly said. "We haven't seen that."
Burglaries were up 6 percent citywide compared to the same period last year, but overall crime was down 27 percent, police said.More than 1 million people remained without power on Tuesday, and forecasters said the nor'easter headed to the region on Wednesday could still bring 50 mph winds gusts to New York and New Jersey, an inch of rain and a storm surge of 3 feet."I know it's been a long, long eight days," Gov. Andrew Cuomo said.The storm fallout didn't deter voters in the most battered areas, with heavy turnout in New York and New Jersey. Cuomo had given displaced New Yorkers the right to vote at any polling place in the state.With the temperatures dropping into the 30s overnight, people in dark, unheated homes were urged to go to overnight shelters or daytime warming centers. Mayor Michael Bloomberg said he would ask — but not force — people to leave some low-lying shore areas hit by Sandy ahead of Wednesday's storm.
Later Tuesday evening, the mayor ordered three nursing homes and an adult care facility evacuated from the Rockaways because of fears the weather might knock out electricity already being provided by generators. About 620 residents were being moved.Bloomberg said in a normal autumn, the storm wouldn't be a big deal and wouldn't warrant evacuations.But "out of precaution and because of the changing physical circumstances, we are going to go to some small areas and ask those people to go to higher ground," the mayor said.He was closing parks, playgrounds and beaches, and property owners were ordered to secure construction sites.Willamae Cooper, 63, rode out Sandy in her apartment in the beachfront Dayton Towers complex in the Rockaways. By Tuesday, Cooper had seen enough. She decided to leave for her daughter's house on Staten Island, rather than have a front row seat to another storm."After that first one, God knows what could happen," she said.___Associated Press Writers Eileen AJ Connelly and Jennifer Peltz in New York and Larry Neumeister and Frank Eltman on Long Island contributed to this report.
Since the superstorm made landfall more than a week ago, killing 40 people in the city, more than 100 in 10 states and leaving millions without power, police said overall crime has actually gone down, not up. There are few reports of looting storm-damaged homes.But Alex Ocasio wasn't convinced. The nursing home worker planned to ride out the latest storm in his first-floor Rockaway apartment — even after seeing cars float by his front door during Sandy.As the water receded, men dressed in dark clothes broke down the door and were surprised to find him and other residents inside. "They tried to say they were rescue workers, then took off," he said.He put up a handmade sign — "Have gun. Will shoot U" — outside his apartment and started using a bed frame to barricade the door. He has gas, so he keeps on the oven and boils water to stay warm at night. "It gets a little humid, but it's not bad," he said. "I'm staying. Nothing can be worse than what happened last week."In the Rockaways, one of the worst-hit areas, nightfall brings with it fears of looting, burglaries — even armed robberies. The idyllic seaside boardwalk was in ruins, streets were covered with sand and cars scattered like trash."You can't go there after dark anymore," said 57-year-old construction worker William Gavin, pointing to a battered, lower-income section of his beachfront community. "It's a good way to get a gun pulled on you."Earlier this week, a retired police officer fired warning shots at someone trying to break into her home in the middle of the night, said Sean Kavanagh."I don't blame her," said Kavanagh, also a retired officer. "I would have done the same."Kavanagh says he's staying home, in part to protect it. "I leave and anything can happen," he said. "It's open season."Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly said it wasn't wise to stay put."I think your life is more important than property," he said.Kelly said police have arrested 123 people citywide since the storm blew in last week, 54 burglary arrests and 41 others stemming from gas line disputes. Police said the majority were in areas suffering from the storm.
"You would think, under the circumstances, you would see much more," Kelly said. "We haven't seen that."
Burglaries were up 6 percent citywide compared to the same period last year, but overall crime was down 27 percent, police said.More than 1 million people remained without power on Tuesday, and forecasters said the nor'easter headed to the region on Wednesday could still bring 50 mph winds gusts to New York and New Jersey, an inch of rain and a storm surge of 3 feet."I know it's been a long, long eight days," Gov. Andrew Cuomo said.The storm fallout didn't deter voters in the most battered areas, with heavy turnout in New York and New Jersey. Cuomo had given displaced New Yorkers the right to vote at any polling place in the state.With the temperatures dropping into the 30s overnight, people in dark, unheated homes were urged to go to overnight shelters or daytime warming centers. Mayor Michael Bloomberg said he would ask — but not force — people to leave some low-lying shore areas hit by Sandy ahead of Wednesday's storm.
Later Tuesday evening, the mayor ordered three nursing homes and an adult care facility evacuated from the Rockaways because of fears the weather might knock out electricity already being provided by generators. About 620 residents were being moved.Bloomberg said in a normal autumn, the storm wouldn't be a big deal and wouldn't warrant evacuations.But "out of precaution and because of the changing physical circumstances, we are going to go to some small areas and ask those people to go to higher ground," the mayor said.He was closing parks, playgrounds and beaches, and property owners were ordered to secure construction sites.Willamae Cooper, 63, rode out Sandy in her apartment in the beachfront Dayton Towers complex in the Rockaways. By Tuesday, Cooper had seen enough. She decided to leave for her daughter's house on Staten Island, rather than have a front row seat to another storm."After that first one, God knows what could happen," she said.___Associated Press Writers Eileen AJ Connelly and Jennifer Peltz in New York and Larry Neumeister and Frank Eltman on Long Island contributed to this report.
Election over but final Florida results still not in
By Tom Brown | Reuters – 7:))AM NOV 7,12
MIAMI (Reuters) - Americans gave President Barack Obama
a second term in office, but it still wasn't clear early on Wednesday
whether the president won the key battleground state of Florida.The vote in the state, which introduced the terms
"hanging chads" and "butterfly ballots" to the masses in its historic
2000 presidential election, was too close to call long after Republican challenger Mitt Romney conceded his loss.
Early Wednesday morning Obama was edging out Romney by about 45,000 votes, or 0.53 percentage points, out of a total of 8.27 million votes cast in Florida, with about 99 percent of the votes counted.
"It's 1:42 in the morning and I just heard there are still people voting in Miami-Dade County," tweeted Chris Cate, spokesman for Florida's Secretary of State, who is responsible for elections. "Kudos to their commitment to voting!"The head of elections for Florida's Miami-Dade County, which accounts for about 10 percent of the state's 12 million registered voters, said final results would not be available until Wednesday afternoon.Until then, it may not be totally clear whether Obama won the state, which he carried in 2008.
At one church in Miami hundreds of voters were still in line when polls were due to close at 7 p.m."I believe that Obama is doing a good job and he's going to do a better job," said Michele Adriaanse, 59, who arrived to vote at 6.30 p.m. and finally cast her ballot shortly before midnight. "If we don't give him the chance, things will go back to how they were," she added.Miami-Dade Supervisor of Elections Penelope Townsley told reporters the delay was due to "an extremely high volume of absentee ballots" and because long lines forced some precincts to remain open hours after their official closing time.Florida accounts for 29 of the 270 votes in the electoral college a candidate needs to win the presidency. That is more than any other swing state, and by many accounts the fourth-largest state was a must-win for Romney.Most recent polls had given Romney an edge over the incumbent in Florida, where the economic recovery has been slower than in other states and long-term unemployment has reached record highs.But registered Democrats outnumber registered Republicans in Florida by about 5 percentage points and Romney faced multiple headwinds in the state.A plan by Romney's vice presidential running mate, U.S. Representative Paul Ryan, to change the Medicare health insurance program for seniors was among the factors often cited as holding back Romney's campaign in the retiree-heavy state.He also suffered from an inability to make inroads among Hispanic voters, outside of the state's conservative Cuban-American community.Florida propelled former President George W. Bush to a wafer-thin victory in 2000 when he won the state by 537 votes.
SLOW-GOING
Complaints about voting procedures, long lines to cast ballots, restrictions on early voting and some possible irregularities have been heard repeatedly across Florida. There have been no claims of anything widespread or problematic enough to cast doubt on the credibility of the Florida outcome.It also was not immediately whether U.S. Representative Allen West - the firebrand Republican lawmaker known for his blistering attacks on Obama and other Democrats - had won one of the country's most closely watched congressional races.West, a darling of the conservative Tea Party movement, had amassed one of the largest campaign war chests among House Republicans. His known supporters included organizations like Americans for Prosperity, the conservative political advocacy group funded by the billionaire Koch brothers.But he faced a tough re-election challenge against Democrat Patrick Murphy, who had hammered the first-term Republican for the intransigence that led to gridlock in Washington.Early Wednesday morning, West, 51, was trailing by 2,000 votes out of the 318,000 ballots cast.Murphy, a 29-year-old businessman and political newcomer, had strong backing from party headquarters and was one of the best-funded Democratic challengers in the country.A certified public accountant whose father runs a construction company in Miami, Murphy turned the race into a referendum on West, calling the Republican an extremist member of a "do-nothing" Congress.
The battle in Florida's new 18th district was seen as a test of whether a high-profile - some say polarizing - conservative could win one of the biggest swing districts in a perennial swing state.(Reporting by Tom Brown; Additional reporting by David Adams; Editing by Paul Simao)
Early Wednesday morning Obama was edging out Romney by about 45,000 votes, or 0.53 percentage points, out of a total of 8.27 million votes cast in Florida, with about 99 percent of the votes counted.
"It's 1:42 in the morning and I just heard there are still people voting in Miami-Dade County," tweeted Chris Cate, spokesman for Florida's Secretary of State, who is responsible for elections. "Kudos to their commitment to voting!"The head of elections for Florida's Miami-Dade County, which accounts for about 10 percent of the state's 12 million registered voters, said final results would not be available until Wednesday afternoon.Until then, it may not be totally clear whether Obama won the state, which he carried in 2008.
At one church in Miami hundreds of voters were still in line when polls were due to close at 7 p.m."I believe that Obama is doing a good job and he's going to do a better job," said Michele Adriaanse, 59, who arrived to vote at 6.30 p.m. and finally cast her ballot shortly before midnight. "If we don't give him the chance, things will go back to how they were," she added.Miami-Dade Supervisor of Elections Penelope Townsley told reporters the delay was due to "an extremely high volume of absentee ballots" and because long lines forced some precincts to remain open hours after their official closing time.Florida accounts for 29 of the 270 votes in the electoral college a candidate needs to win the presidency. That is more than any other swing state, and by many accounts the fourth-largest state was a must-win for Romney.Most recent polls had given Romney an edge over the incumbent in Florida, where the economic recovery has been slower than in other states and long-term unemployment has reached record highs.But registered Democrats outnumber registered Republicans in Florida by about 5 percentage points and Romney faced multiple headwinds in the state.A plan by Romney's vice presidential running mate, U.S. Representative Paul Ryan, to change the Medicare health insurance program for seniors was among the factors often cited as holding back Romney's campaign in the retiree-heavy state.He also suffered from an inability to make inroads among Hispanic voters, outside of the state's conservative Cuban-American community.Florida propelled former President George W. Bush to a wafer-thin victory in 2000 when he won the state by 537 votes.
SLOW-GOING
Complaints about voting procedures, long lines to cast ballots, restrictions on early voting and some possible irregularities have been heard repeatedly across Florida. There have been no claims of anything widespread or problematic enough to cast doubt on the credibility of the Florida outcome.It also was not immediately whether U.S. Representative Allen West - the firebrand Republican lawmaker known for his blistering attacks on Obama and other Democrats - had won one of the country's most closely watched congressional races.West, a darling of the conservative Tea Party movement, had amassed one of the largest campaign war chests among House Republicans. His known supporters included organizations like Americans for Prosperity, the conservative political advocacy group funded by the billionaire Koch brothers.But he faced a tough re-election challenge against Democrat Patrick Murphy, who had hammered the first-term Republican for the intransigence that led to gridlock in Washington.Early Wednesday morning, West, 51, was trailing by 2,000 votes out of the 318,000 ballots cast.Murphy, a 29-year-old businessman and political newcomer, had strong backing from party headquarters and was one of the best-funded Democratic challengers in the country.A certified public accountant whose father runs a construction company in Miami, Murphy turned the race into a referendum on West, calling the Republican an extremist member of a "do-nothing" Congress.
The battle in Florida's new 18th district was seen as a test of whether a high-profile - some say polarizing - conservative could win one of the biggest swing districts in a perennial swing state.(Reporting by Tom Brown; Additional reporting by David Adams; Editing by Paul Simao)
