| Wednesday, October 31, 2012 6:00 AM

It's amazing how Mother Nature can change the outcome of an election.

We saw it here when the first Christchurch earthquake struck that thankfully didn't lead to the loss of life.

The local body elections were just around the corner and at the time the silver tongued Bob Parker look as though he was on a hiding to nothing. Saint Jim Anderton was streets ahead in the polls but then Mother Nature joined the campaign.

This was Parker's life, he was on telly virtually around the clock assuring citizens that things were under control. Dressed in his bright orange jacket he told the shaken Cantabrians that he'd lead the city through the disaster, in fact he had no choice.

Anderton could just sit back and watch his popularity melt away, he wasn't getting the air time and of course you can't make politics out of a natural disaster.

So you can imagine how American Presidential hopeful Mitt Romney's feeling right now.

Going into the final days of the campaign the Barack Obama camp was worried, Romney was raking in the dosh for a final push at the White House, much more was coming his way than was flowing into the Democratic coffers. They put out a desperate plea for donations with a promise of going into a draw for a front seat in the Chicago convention centre on election night and the chance to meet Obama.

Well Obama's now returned to the White House to take control and show off his leadership skills while Romney can just sit on the sidelines while the cameras point at The President making full, frank and meaningless statements, like "millions of people are going to be affected," by the Sandy storm. He told those at the eye of what's become known as Frankenstorm because it's fallen on the eve of Halloween that they have to listen to officials and evacuate when they're told to.

It's hardly rocket science but it's leadership, at the heart of what this race is all about, and Obama now must stand a better chance of remaining the tenant at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue than he did before Mother Nature came calling and at least it's not draining his campaign fund.

As for Romney, well he must be itching to spend some of his!

Photo: Getty Images