Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations
Make a sustaining gift today to support local journalism!

New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie 'Postpones' Halloween

Halloween will have to wait.
Sascha Schuermann
/
AP
Halloween will have to wait.

Yes, we already made one child cry. In that spirit, here's more bad news for the shorter demographic: New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie has signed an executive order postponing Halloween until Nov. 5.

Coming from any other governor, the decision would have immediately been met with sensible nods. But Christie has made his name by being tough and blunt.

The reaction on Twitter? Mostly jokes about Christie, but also a lot of "Can he do that?"

Per a state of New Jersey press release, what this really means is that official Halloween celebrations are postponed.

"I've taken this action to minimize additional risks to lives and the public safety as we begin the process of rebuilding and recovering from Hurricane Sandy," Christie said in a statement. "In too many communities in our state, the damage and losses from this storm are still being sorted out, and dangerous conditions abound even as our emergency management and response officials continue their work. As Governor, it is my responsibility to use all available resources of the state government to protect against the emergency created by Hurricane Sandy – postponing Halloween celebrations by five days is a commonsense and necessary step to accomplish that."

Update at 12:54 p.m. ET. Meanwhile In Brooklyn...

there are reports of children taking advantage of the school cancellations to trick-or-treat early.

Copyright 2021 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

Eyder Peralta is NPR's East Africa correspondent based in Nairobi, Kenya.

You make NHPR possible.

NHPR is nonprofit and independent. We rely on readers like you to support the local, national, and international coverage on this website. Your support makes this news available to everyone.

Give today. A monthly donation of $5 makes a real difference.