Paul Ryan hits campaign trail after storm

• The presidential campaign took a pause for superstorm Sandy
• Polls show the presidential race is tight in Wisconsin, a swing state
• Wisconsin hasn't voted for a GOP presidential nominee since 1984

GOP vice presidential nominee Paul Ryan resumed campaigning Wednesday after a storm-induced pause, urging the people who know him best to cast their votes for Mitt Romney.

Ryan is campaigning all day in his native Wisconsin, where public opinion polls show a tight race between President Obama and Romney. The presidential race took a break Tuesday after superstorm Sandy unleashed its deadly fury in the Northeast.

"Wake up next Wednesday morning knowing we elected a leader who will put our country back on the right track," Ryan said at a rally in Eau Claire, Wis. "On Day One, we can start pointing us in the right direction."

Romney resumes campaigning Wednesday in Florida, the biggest prize among the swing states with 29 electoral votes. President Obama, who came off the campaign trail to monitor emergency response to the storm, hits the battlegrounds of Wisconsin, Nevada and Colorado starting Thursday.

Wisconsin, which has 10 electoral votes at stake, hasn't voted Republican in a presidential election since 1984. Obama leads Romney by an average of about 2 percentage points, according to polls compiled by RealClearPolitics.

Ryan, who is also running for re-election to his House seat in southern Wisconsin, cast the election as one that will set the country's course for the next generation. As he decried the nation's unemployment and mounting debts, Ryan said Romney is the candidate with the right economic plan.

"What we need is someone who gets out of bed every morning and says, 'How do I solve these problems,' " Romney's running mate said.

Ryan began his campaign remarks by hailing the millions of people who have been affected by Sandy, and urged the audience to make donations to the Red Cross. He also makes campaign stops today in Green Bay and Racine.