Ghosts, ghouls and Spidey?

Valley Life editor

With just a few days remaining before the national presidential election, candidates John Kerry and George Bush will be making appearances throughout the Mat-Su Valley this weekend.

If you look closely at the candidates, however, you'll find that their faces look a little, well, contorted. It's not because they're battling for the vote of the Valley -- it's because they are made of rubber. It being an election year, politics play big when it comes to Halloween costumes.

John Kerry and George W. Bush masks are just two of countless costumes that are a hit this Halloween.

When it comes to the younger set, count on seeing Spiderman this weekend -- and several of them, if the National Retail Federation is correct. The NRF conducted a survey of parents nationwide, and they reported that this year, Spiderman is the top costume among children, with an estimated 2.15 million kids donning Spidey outfits.

"With the popularity of Spiderman for Halloween this year, it's easy to see how frequently children take cues from pop culture," said NRF president and CEO Tracy Mullin.

Locally, there are several options for people looking to take on an alter ego for a Halloween party. Valley Rental Center has a full line of costume accessories, and they said business has been steady as Halloween approaches.

"It picks up, but the day before Halloween and then the day of are the two biggest days of the year for us in the party store," said Alayna Sucevich of Valley Rental Center. "It's the most walk-in traffic we have all year."

Local favorites have included Popeye and Olive Oyl combinations, as well as "pimp" outfits with Zoot suits.

"We rent and sell, and it's hard to tell what is going to be the really popular costumes because people wait until the last minute," Sucevich said.

For businesses, Halloween is a hit. In fact, it's the sixth-largest holiday in terms of consumer spending, the NRF reported. As part of its Halloween Consumer Intentions and Actions Survey, the NRF reported that Halloween spending this year is estimated to reach $3.12 billion nationally, up from $2.96 billion last year. BIGresearch, which conducted the survey for the NRF, said the biggest reason why is the novelty of the holiday.

"Young adults aren't willing to relinquish a holiday they grew up enjoying," said Phil Rist, vice president of strategy for BIGresearch. "Halloween remains one of the only days where society gives adults permission to act like kids again."

That's the case locally, Sucevich said.

"Our Halloween novelty items are the most popular, wigs are very popular -- everything about Halloween is popular," Sucevich said. "People really, really get into Halloween."

Christmas and Thanksgiving, grouped together as "winter holidays" rank first in consumer spending with $219.9 billion estimated, with Valentine's Day ($12.79 billion), Easter ($10.47 billion), Mother's Day ($10.43 billion) and Father's Day ($8.04 billion) taking the top five spots for retailers.

Halloween, however, comes at an important time on the calendar.

"Halloween fills an important retail void between back-to-school and the holiday season," Mullin said. "Many retailers are carving out quite a niche for themselves in the Halloween market."