Offers Something It Calls 'Election Protection'

We admit that we don't often cover stories about airline promotional gimmicks, but we had to tell you about this one. With the first 2012 Presidential debate in the history books, JetBlue Airways says it is making good on an Election Protection promise: the chance for customers to freely leave the country (and return home!) if they need a break because their candidate doesn't win. The airline is offering passengers the opportunity to select their choice for President and enter for a chance to a win a free ticket to one of the airline's 21 international destinations if the election doesn't go their way.

"We've all heard it said before: if my candidate does not win, I'm leaving the country," said Marty St. George, senior vice president marketing and commercial strategy for JetBlue. "Fun is one of our five founding values, and in this spirit we decided to give people a chance to recover from the political noise and follow through on their claim to skip town if their candidate comes up short. And with service to more than 20 international destinations JetBlue is the perfect fix. Most importantly, we want to highlight the freedom we have as Americans to exercise our right to vote and encourage everyone to do their part on November 6. Live Free or Fly!"

The site will offer a real-time map of customers' preferred destinations, and a social media ticker will track buzz around the campaign. After the results are in, JetBlue will give away 1,006 roundtrip certificates -- that's 2012 seats -- to participants whose candidate lost. Tickets are good for roundtrip travel from any airport JetBlue services to 21 international, nonstop destinations including Aruba, Bahamas, Barbados, Bermuda, Cayman Islands, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Jamaica, Mexico, St. Maarten, St. Lucia and Turks & Caicos.

JetBlue encourages all Americans to get out and exercise their right to vote. And if your candidate doesn't win, well maybe you can win for losing.

FMI: www.jetblue.com