Voters catch a break in 2013 after a hectic 2012 election year

  Oakland County voters get a break in 2013 after a 2012 election year packed with the contested Republican presidential primary, the presidential race itself and a November ballot jammed with everything from the presidential race to constable in one community.
  Along the way, they endured an unexpected congressional vacancy in western Oakland County and an intra-party fight to fill the seat in a saga that included criminal prosecutions and special elections.
  By comparison, 2013 promises to be a snoozer of an election year.

VIDEO OF THE DAY: Past hits and misses

  More on debate hits and misses from the past:

Televised presidential debates: How important are they?

  How important are televised debates in this year's presidential election?
  The conventional scuttlebutt going around is that Republican Mitt Romney will have to score some big blows in the presidential debates this month if he hopes to defeat President Barack Obama Nov. 6. The first televised debate is Wednesday night.
  However, a video from Buzz60 by Jay DeDapper suggests that televised debates seldom change the course of an election, but listed what he feels are three moments in debate history that did.