BY Anna Cooperberg and Claire Stern
As NBC receives state results, the states drawn on Rockefeller Center’s iconic ice rink will turn red or blue. Photo: Anna Cooperberg.
In honor of Election Day, Rockefeller Center transformed into Democracy Plaza, decorated in red, white and blue. A variety of exhibits sponsored by NBC News and Windows 8 were displayed, most notably a giant map of the United States etched on the ice skating rink. On Tuesday night, the states on the ice will light up blue or red as NBC calls the race. Red and blue banners on the side of 30 Rockefeller Center will also rise as electoral votes come in.
People lined up to get their caricatures drawn alongside the presidential candidates. Photo: Claire Stern.
Caricature artists’ booths where passersby could get customized digital drawings of themselves with the candidates were a highlight at the event. Nadine Simpson, a nurse from New Jersey in town to help with Sandy relief efforts, waited on line for a caricature. Asked about what her caricature would be, she chuckled and said, “I was thinking about giving Obama a high-five or giving Romney bunny ears.” Simpson already cast her vote a couple of days ago in Maryland.
Banners representing the number of electoral votes that each candidate gets over the course of the night will rise on the side of 30 Rockefeller Plaza. Photo: Anna Cooperberg.
Christopher Lengerich, the zone manager for the event, said many visitors had stopped by Democracy Plaza since it opened last Tuesday.
“It’s been a full crowd all week long,” he said. “Today, especially, there’s lots of excitement about the election.” In addition to the coverage of the race on the ice rink and the side of 30 Rockefeller, the NBC News Decision Desk will broadcast tonight live from their headquarters at the space.
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