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a longer-than-expected stay in Greater Cincinnati, others looked to
alternative means of transportation, creating a run on rental car
vehicles.
By mid-afternoon, when rental agencies at the airport were
out of cars, some desperate people lined up waiting for vehicles to
be returned.
What otherwise would have been the story of the day in
Cincinnati – former TV newscaster Courtis Fuller’s upset first-
place finish over Luken in the primary for the city’s first directly
elected strong mayor in three-quarters of a century – was relegated
to civic footnote status by the history-altering news out of New
York and Washington.
“It’s almost like it went away”, Pam Swafford, deputy
director of the Hamilton County Board of Elections, said of the
balloting, which dominated early-morning newscasts here – until
just before 8:45 a.m.
The polls in Cincinnati had been open for more than two
hours when the first news reports of the attack on the World Trade
Center flashed across Greater Cincinnati TV screens. “There is no
provision in law that permits us to stop an election”, said elections
board director Julie Stautberg.
No polling places were located in buildings that closed
early Tuesday. Elections officials did confront one problem,
however, news reports that New York’s mayoral election Tuesday
had been postponed, which some mistakenly thought meant that
Cincinnati’s race was off, too.
On a grim day that doused most sentiment for normal
entertainment – underlined nationally by Major-League Baseball’s
decision to cancel all games and Disney World’s closure – many
tri-state venues also closed out of respect for the victims.
There were no horse races at the River Downs or Turfway
Park, and southeastern Indiana’s riverboat casinos also closed
early. The Playhouse in the Park canceled Tuesday night’s

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