United States Presidential Election, 2008

Barack Obama and John McCain

• It has been proposed that this page, :United States Presidential Election, 2008, be titled, "United States presidential election, 2008".
  

The 2008 United States Presidential Election took place on Tuesday, November 4, 2008. The primary season for both the Republican Party and the Democratic Party officially began on January 3, 2008 with the Iowa Caucuses and ended on June 3, 2008. The 2008 election cycle has seen a major shift to the primary election calendar, frontloading many primaries into early February. Senator Barack Obama of Illinois is the Democratic Party nominee, with Senator Joe Biden of Delaware as his Vice Presidential running mate. Senator John McCain of Arizona is the Republican candidate. His Vice Presidential nominee is Alaska Governor Sarah Palin.

Obama held a 5 to 7 point lead most of the summer, but faded steadily in August. After the selection of Palin, the first woman ever on a GOP ticket, McCain leapfrogged Obama in the national polls and held a slim 2.5 point lead in mid September. Until this point, nationwide polls all year had shown a massive defeat for GOP candidates for Congress. With the GOP running 10 points behind, the Democrats stood a good chance of gaining 5-9 Senate seats and 15-20 House seats. The surge in McCain's polls helped pull up the GOP numbers; by Sept. 12 the GOP deficit was only 3.6 points, indicating small losses. However, more recently the margin has once again widened to about 5 points.

First election without incumbents since 1928

If eligible to do so, the President of the United States often runs for reelection. If the President does not run, the Vice President of the United States will often run to replace the President after he leaves office. 2008 will mark the first time since the 1928 election in which there is neither an incumbent President nor an incumbent Vice President running for his party's presidential nomination and thus not running in the Presidential election. In the United States presidential election of 1952, the race was between Republican candidate Dwight D. Eisenhower and Democratic candidate Adlai Stevenson. Vice President Alben Barkley sought but failed to win the Democratic nomination. Current Vice President Dick Cheney has repeatedly stated he will not run for President. "I will say just as hard as I possibly know how to say... If nominated, I will not run; if elected, I will not serve," Cheney said on Fox News Sunday.

Differences between 2008 and other elections

In 2008, CNN-YouTube held the first debate in which the questions asked of the nominees in each party came primarily from YouTube viewer submitted videos. The debates received high ratings, however, CNN was criticized for not picking questions that were 'tough' or pertinent enough. One such example was during the Democratic Debate, when CNN chose to ask a question from a snow man, talking about global warming. During the Republican debate, some claimed that many of the questions were from Democratic supporters just meant to embarrass the Republican candidates. For example, a question over whether or not homosexuals should serve in the U.S. military was asked by retired general and gay activist Keith Kerr, an adviser to Hillary Clinton's campaign.

The internet has also played a major role in the election, with then-Republican presidential candidate Ron Paul and Democratic candidate Barack Obama being very active on the internet.

Young voters

In 2004 64% of voters aged 18-29 were registered to vote. This year 75% of voters in that age group are registered. This demographic usually favors Democrats.

Uncommitted Electorate

As of the beginning of October, 2008 approximately 6-8% of poll respondents were undecided.

Election Day

In an odd move, Obama called upon his supporters to skip work to make sure they vote and to get out the vote in their neighborhoods. In a sense it will help disrupt productivity in America at a time when there is already a fear that the country is in a recession and severly pushes the law that allows employees to take time off from work to vote if they could not vote otherwise. Almost half of black Americans plan to take the day off as do 21% of people who have already voted. 94% of Republicans plan on being at work.

Opinion polling

Polling Outfit	Date	Sample*	Obama (D)	McCain (R)
Rasmussen Tracking	10/29 - 10/31	3000 LV	51	46
Gallup Tracking Traditional	10/29 - 10/31	2516 LV	52	42
Gallup Tracking Expanded	10/29 - 10/31	2480 LV	52	42
Zogby Tracking	10/29 - 10/31	1200 LV	49	44

• RV refers to registered voters, LV refers to likely voters.

Most polling does not include third party candidates. While that was an issue back in May when Barr attracted 6% of the vote in four way polling and Nader 4%, it has become a virutally non-issue with the election drawing near. Third party candidates generally have much lower percentage of votes cast for them than they poll beforehand, and this election that especially seems to be true.

Also, when possible, polling is reported without counting 'leaners'. Leaners early on were favoring McCain, but they have also become less of an issue as the election has progressed nor does either candidate seem to have an advantage in this area with the shrinking number of people who still fit in this category.

Due to the nature of the presidential election where Presidents are elected state by state instead of total votes received nationwide, it is possible in a close race for a candidate to win the Presidency while losing the popular vote. This is meaningful if the election is within a point or possibly two, but with Obama holding a greater lead than that, the electoral college is also favoring him.

McCain vs. Obama

McCain had the early edge, wrapping up the Republican nomination before Obama was known to be the choice of the Democrats, but this was one of the few advantages he has had. Both Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama raised far more money than McCain and the Democratic primary saw a surge of new voters coming out leading to a large increase in the rolls of Democrats. From the historical position of a generally equal number of Republicans and Democrats, the numbers have now tilted 41% Democrat to only 32% Republican. From the time that Obama was declared the nominee, opinion polling showed him with a modest advantage over McCain in terms of who the voters would choose to be their next President.

Obama's strategy was to tie McCain to George Bush, a very unpopular President, even though McCain was not a part of the Bush administration and often clashed with Bush during his time as senator. McCain, for his part, had to walk a fine line with accepting praise from the President to woo conservatives, while at the same time keeping enough distance so as to not alienate moderates. When possible, McCain went after Obama's lack of foreign policy experience.

On paper, the nomination would seem to heavily favor the Democrats. Overall, Democrat candidates have a +10% advantage over Republicans in a 'generic' election. The current unpopular President is a Republican, and the economy is treading water. Also, based on statistical percentages of articles on each candidate, Obama was being focused on with press coverage far more than McCain. When McCain chastised Obama for his lack of foreign policy experience and that he hadn't been to Iraq or Afghanistan in years, Obama's campaign set up for him to take a trip to both countries. While this is expected in politics, the decision of every major network to send a team of reporters to follow him was unprecedented. Obama spoke to 200,000 people in Berlin in a highly covered speech. McCain spoke to 50,000 in Buffalo shortly thereafter and barely got a whisper. Obama's numbers started to rise, but a good deal of the populace was noticing the disparity as 48% of those polled felt the press was trying to help Obama win.

Obama seemed pleased to coast on his advantages, but McCain realized he needed to shake things up. He scored by pushing offshore drilling for oil during a time when oil prices were climbing almost daily. Obama rejected the idea, but the poll numbers started to show a greater percentage of Americans warming to the concept and McCain's numbers started to improve. Obama announced he would accept some measure of offshore drilling, and McCain's momentum was halted and his gains retreated by a couple of points. McCain started an ad campaign that acknowledged Obama's celebrity status, but asking what it meant. A few days later at the start of August he called out Obama for 'playing the race card' when Obama made a reference to McCain and Bush trying to scare people because he (Obama) doesn't look like other Presidents on dollar bills. The Democrats fired back, but quickly let the issue drop when poll numbers showed that most voters did consider Obama's statement to be racist.. The bounce for Obama after the Berlin speech shrank back to pre-trip levels. While Obama continued to enjoy a slight lead in the polls, McCain continued to keep the race close without either candidate breaking away.

In mid-August both candidates came together at the invitation of Pastor Rick Warren where each was asked a series of the same questions dealing both with political and personal views. While not a debate, it was the first televised forum where both candidates had a chance to express themselves and their positions. Obama hoped to appeal to Christian conservatives by expressing a religious side while McCain hoped to solidify the conservative base by sharing his own conservative and religious credentials. The difference in style between the two was evident as Obama spent more time explaining and expounding on his positions while McCain was more straight-forward and received more laughs with his candid speaking style. The polling numbers continued as they had been.

There was a bounce at the start of the Democratic convention, but not what was expected as McCain suddenly drew even in the race. The friction between Hillary Clinton and Obama as well as the perceived slight of Hillary when Biden was chosen as the Vice Presidential candidate hurt Obama at a time when his approval was expected to climb. McCain then made a mistake by airing an ad of Hillary Clinton that 'supported' him. Clinton was set to speak at the convention and it was no secret that there was bad blood between her and Obama and it was widely believed that her support for Obama would be lukewarm at best. Instead, apparently galvanized by McCain's hubris before her speech, she came out strongly for Obama and rallied those who supported her. Obama's pre-convention edge returned. Obama followed it up with a very strong speech the next day in a huge stadium with fireworks and a Greek temple. Dick Morris, a political pundit usually giving advice to Republicans felt that Obama had done such a good job reaching out to the groups that he needed that he would pull ahead by double-digits. In order to suppress the bounce from the convention, McCain announced his Vice Presidential candidate the next day, a woman, Alaskan governor Sarah Palin. The bounce for Obama was muted at first, but increased in the following days to surpass pre-convention levels, especially as Sarah Palin came under heavy attack in the media.

The edge continued as the Republican convention began. Losing a day to the hurricane, their shortened convention came out strong as well, emphasizing John McCain as a patriot and a maverick for change who is tested and will do what is right for the country regardless of political affiliation. It was notable for the secondary role that the sitting President played, talking only briefly and barely being mentioned after that. The convention tied McCain to Ronald Reagan, a popular Republican President who was able to gain the support of a good number of conservative Democrats, an ability that McCain would badly need to emulate. While the convention had very high ratings starting with Palin's well received speech, it was unclear what the impact would be in the polls. Indeed Obama continued to lead directly afterward, but that soon changed with a turn of about 8 points and a slim lead for McCain. The Republican convention had actually more than balanced out the powerful Democratic convention.

While Obama had stated that his campaign would avoid negative advertising, as it became clear that the bounce from the convention was continuing to last and he might lose the election, his campaign turned more forcefully to negative advertising. In ads aired since the Republican convention through mid September, McCain's ads were about Obama 56% of the time, but Obama's ads were about his opponents 77% of the time. Obama also received a large boost from the press which vigorously attacked McCain, but even more so Palin. Obama appeared on The O'Reilly Factor and was treated with civility and respect, even if not with agreement. McCain and his wife appeared on The View and were treated like last week's gutter trash. The constant negative barrage and reporting slowly moved the numbers back to even.

As the negative articles on Palin continued to intensify, some of which just quoted celebrities who had never met her calling her "whacko" or a "hater of women", her first major interview with Gibson was a turning point. Gibson asked Palin about the Bush Doctrine, but wouldn't define it for her even as she asked questions for clarifications. When she then answered with her understanding, Gibson rebuked her by implying that she misunderstood the doctrine. In truth, since the term is only a press invention, it has taken on different meanings at different times and the definition that Palin gave matched one that Gibson himself had used years earlier. Nevertheless, it was a moment and was jumped on by the press. Those who saw the interview voted heavily that they were now less likely to vote for Palin. The attack on her had muted her effectiveness, even if it was unjustified.

Stemming the tide of the McCain campaign's lead became a strong swing for Obama with a series of events that went to the Democratic nominee's favor. The polls began to tack to Obama's favor with the collapse of Lehman Brothers and a subsequent 500-point drop in the Dow Jones Index. Then, President Bush sounded a major alarm on the economy and proposed a huge 700 billion dollar rescue plan for the mortgage industry, which sent shock waves through the American populace and swept them with even more fear on the economic picture. Bush called both Presidential nominees to meet with him and Congress. It gave Obama a boost in legitimacy, his previous Achilles' heel. While he had a weak record in accomplishments and showing leadership, the chance to be propelled to a position of prominence handed it to him on a silver platter. Moreover, the plan was more problematic among Republicans than it was among Democrats, giving Obama another boost merely by supporting it while putting McCain on more shaky ground. Both candidates supported it once again blurring McCain's advantage in experience if both men were seen as interchangeable in their reaction.

McCain chose to suspend his campaign until a deal on the bailout was reached, a mistake. The Democrats could add pork to the plan and make it even more unpalatable to the Republicans, and they did. As the first debate loomed and no deal had been reached, McCain was in a quandary. He chose to attend the debate under the view that the plan was well under way to being passed. After the debate the plan was actually defeated and wouldn't be adopted, with more changes, until the following week.

McCain's debate with Obama went well and he was viewed as having done better than expected. Unfortunately for him, Obama was also viewed as doing better than expected and was seen as looking Presidential, further cementing his standing and locking in a lead in the polls that had become rather substantial. The Vice Presidential debate was the most watched in history and Palin was given high marks for her performance, but unfortunately for the Republican ticket, Biden was also on his game that night and also came across well. There were no changes in the polling numbers and the number of undecided voters began to quickly dwindle. The second and third debates caused little change as well.

With Obama spending 110 million dollars on TV advertising in October alone, including 30 minute specials on each of the major networks, McCain will be hard pressed to make up the necessary ground to win the election after being outspent by 3 to 1 for TV adds over that time period. He can't count on regular TV to help put in a good word for him either, as late night political jokes are running at a pace of 7 jokes against McCain/Palin for every 1 joke against Obama/Biden and a study of news stories on McCain and Obama since the end of the conventions found that 57% of news stories about McCain were negative while only 29% were for Obama. A later study by the independent Pew Research Center found that the discrepency had grown even worse. McCain had 57% of the articles about him negative while only 14% were positive, while Obama had more positive articles than negative. The only network to achieve a balance, 40% negative for both, was FoxNews.

State by State Breakdown

Battleground states

The United States had become so regionally polarized that even though the 2004 presidential election was close nationwide, only nine states had outcomes having less than 4% margin between the candidates:

State, margin of victory, party that won the state in 2004

1. Wisconsin, 0.38% (Dem)
2. Iowa, 0.67% (Repub)
3. New Mexico, 0.79% (Repub)
4. New Hampshire, 1.37% (Dem)
5. Ohio, 2.11% (Repub)
6. Pennsylvania, 2.50% (Dem)
7. Nevada, 2.59% (Repub)
8. Michigan, 3.42% (Dem)
9. Minnesota, 3.48% (Dem)

It is assumed that the 2008 election will be similar where close battles in a few states could determine the outcome. Individual state polling numbers for the 2008 election are provided. Similar to the overall election where the number of undecided voters is quickly dwindling, the numbers are coming much close to approaching the full 100% than they were earlier in the campaign. This requires a candidate changing a voter's mind to improve his standing, a much harder task than simply convincing an undecided.

• Red = McCain leading
• Blue = Obama leading

State	Obama (D)	McCain (R)	Source	Updated
Alabama	39%	60%	Rasmussen	09/22/08
Alaska	41%	57%	Rasmussen	10/28/08
Arkansas	44%	54%	Rasmussen	10/27/08
Arizona	46%	51%	Rasmussen	10/26/08
California	61%	34%	Rasmussen	11/02/08
Colorado	51%	47%	Rasmussen	10/26/08
Connecticut	56%	39%	Rasmussen	10/14/08
Delaware	56%	41%	Rasmussen	10/10/08
Florida	49%	50%	Rasmussen	11/02/08
Georgia	47%	52%	Rasmussen	10/30/08
Hawaii	61%	31%	SurveyUSA	03/06/08
Idaho	37%	53%	DailyKos.com	07/30/08
Illinois	60%	38%	Rasmussen	11/01/08
Indiana	46%	49%	Rasmussen	10/29/08
Iowa	52%	44%	Rasmussen	10/23/08
Kansas	41%	54%	Rasmuseen	10/13/08
Kentucky	43%	55%	Rasmussen	10/29/08
Louisiana	41%	57%	Rasmussen	10/22/08
Maine	51%	46%	Rasmussen	10/02/08
Maryland	60%	37%	Rasmussen	09/20/08
Massachusetts	62%	34%	Rasmussen	10/13/08
Michigan	53%	43%	Rasmussen	10/28/08
Minnesota	55%	43%	Rasmussen	10/28/08
Mississippi	45%	53%	Rasmussen	10/27/08
Missouri	49%	49%	Rasmussen	11/02/08
Montana	46%	50%	Rasmussen	10/29/08
Nebraska	37%	56%	Rasmussen	09/30/08
Nevada	50%	46%	Rasmussen	10/27/08
New Hampshire	50%	46%	Rasmussen	10/25/08
New Jersey	57%	42%	Rasmussen	11/02/08
New Mexico	54%	44%	Rasmussen	10/28/08
New York	57%	37%	Rasmussen	10/14/08
North Carolina	49%	50%	Rasmussen	11/02/08
North Dakota	41%	55%	Rasmussen	09/08/08
Ohio	49%	49%	Rasmussen	11/02/08
Oklahoma	32%	63%	Rasmussen	09/11/08
Oregon	54%	42%	Rasmussen	10/30/08
Pennsylvania	52%	46%	Rasmussen	11/01/08
Rhode Island	58%	39%	Rasmussen	09/13/08
South Carolina	43%	54%	Rasmussen	10/20/08
South Dakota	44%	53%	Rasmussen	10/30/08
Tennessee	42%	54%	Rasmussen	10/16/08
Texas	44%	54%	Rasmussen	10/21/08
Utah	32%	64%	Rasmussen	10/14/08
Vermont	60%	36%	Rasmussen	09/13/08
Virginia	51%	47%	Rasmussen	11/02/08
Washington	54%	43%	Rasmussen	10/22/08
West Virginia	43%	52%	Rasmussen	10/20/08
Wisconsin	51%	44%	Rasmussen	10/23/08
Wyoming	39%	58%	Rasmussen	09/10/08

Analysis of States by Region

Because of the electoral college system in the United States, it is important to analyze the presidential election by each state. These states are grouped into regions.

New England

Barack Obama is almost certain to win almost every state in this region, which tend to be very liberal. The only exception is in New Hampshire, where John McCain is well liked and George Bush won in 2000. This state is expected to be competitive. On the other hand, with only four electoral votes, the impact on the election will not be as great as some other battleground states.

Mid-Atlantic

New York, Delaware, and Maryland are solidly Democrat and will vote for Obama this election. New Jersey is less so, but still has Democratic leanings, and will probably go for Obama. Pennsylvania is a very important swing state for both candidates, as it has 21 electoral votes, fifth most in the nation, and has both liberal and conservative elements. In recent years, the state has moved toward becoming Democrat. However, it is not yet at the point that is safely in the Democratic camp, and will still be focused on heavily by both candidates during this election cycle. McCain still has a very good chance because Obama was unable to connect with the working-class citizens of Pennsylvania during the Democratic primary.

South-Atlantic

Washington, D.C. is overwhelmingly liberal and will vote for Obama; however, with three electoral votes its significance is limited. Although Virginia has usually been Republican territory in Presidential elections, this year it has become a competitive state. Democrats will work on increasing the voter turnout in the northern part of the state, with a high population of D.C. transplants. McCain's strength is in the southern regions and among the military. In the Carolinas, which usually votes Republican, McCain is seen as having the edge, but Obama may be competitive in these states if he mobilizes the African-American population. Georgia is a state where a third-party candidate Bob Barr could make a difference. While most voters favor McCain, he could lose enough votes to Barr to lose the state, especially if there is a large black turnout. Florida is a very close swing state, most famously known for its role in Election 2000. An important constituency in this state is the Jewish population, who are continuing to support Obama over McCain. Cuban-Americans, who are most upset with Obama's statements that he would meet with Fidel Castro, back McCain.

Deep South

John McCain will do well in the deep south. This includes the states of Texas, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Tennessee, Kentucky and West Virginia. This area is generally conservative, and consistently vote Republican in Presidential elections. Although Obama believes in a fifty-state strategy, it is unlikely that such a strategy will be helpful in getting out the vote in these states apart from the black population.

Swing States (Great Lakes Region)

Strategists believe that the Republican presidential nominee must win Wisconsin or Minnesota, and hold Iowa but that the outcome in New Mexico, which has only 5 electoral votes, is irrelevant. Minnesota's margin of victory for the Democrats in 2004 probably places it out of reach for Republicans in 2008. This is confirmed by recent polling. However, due to the location of the Republican Convention in Minnesota, the state, with ten electoral votes, can come back into play.

West

Barack Obama is almost certainly guaranteed a win in the coastal states of California, Oregon and Washington, while John McCain is favored in Arizona, Idaho, Utah and Texas. Nevada, which voted for Bush in 2000 and 2004, may turn to Obama if Bob Barr manages to pull enough votes from McCain.

Other Important Swing States

Moreover, it is very important for republicans to hold Ohio and Florida. Fortunately, both states have tended to lean republican in the last two presidential elections. Although Florida was disputed in election 2000, it went to Bush undeniably in 2004. Virginia will also be heavily contested this year.

General Strategy

McCain's team wants to convince the electorate of the long-term leadership and experience that John McCain has shown in two decades of government service while emphasizing the relative untested nature of Barak Obama.

Obama's team wants to convince the electorate that Obama is the candidate of fresh ideas while downplaying his relative inexperience compared to the more seasoned McCain. When possible, McCain is lumped together with George Bush, an unpopular President.

Republican Strategy

With more limited funding than his Democratic rival, McCain had favored open town hall meetings to attract the greatest number of people. He is focusing his advertising on swing states. He also asked for open debates with Obama of the Lincoln-Douglas variety where candidates can talk directly to each other, but this was not accepted by the Democratic camp which prefers the current structured format.

McCain will highlight his record of leadership, his service to his country and stress that as President he can be counted on to keep America safe from outside threats. McCain's strongest supporters are the elderly - the group that most wants stability.

McCain's choice of Alaska Governor Sarah Palin as his Vice Presidential nominee was a departure from what was expected and helped to show that he would go down paths that the Republican party had not done in the past. McCain has touted Palin's record of standing up to the Alaska Republican party when she resigned from an Ethics Commission in protest over a lack of ethics of fellow commissioners, as well as when she ran against, and beat, then-incumbent Governor Frank Murkowski in the Republican primary in 2006. McCain will continue to tout her as a "maverick" to complement his own maverick image that he is trying to emphasize. Last, by choosing a female running mate, McCain hoped to pick up the votes of female voters disaffected with the perceived slight of Hillary Clinton by Obama. Prior to the start of the Democratic convention, 30% of Hillary's supporters had still not backed Obama and there was a good deal of bad blood between the two.

With the unfolding of the campaign season and watching the Democratic strategy and how it was playing out in the press and polls, the McCain campaign decided not to cede the moniker of change to Obama, but rather to take it upon themselves by emphasizing that McCain has a track record of change - while Obama does not. The McCain campaign feels it needs to have the voters ask who can be trusted more to get the job done, and if that occurs, then they have the advantage.

With the selection of Palin, and the energy it has brought to the conservative base, McCain has taken to larger rallies, as opposed to town hall meetings and press conferences. By mid-September, he had gone four weeks without a town hall, and three weeks without a press conference, instead sticking to larger engagements, appearing alongside his vice presidential nominee, with larger crowds than he had experienced earlier in his campaign.

Democratic Strategy

Democrats are confident that the low popularity of President George W. Bush and particularly Operation Iraqi Freedom, which John McCain supports, puts them in a highly favorable position for 2008. They have been cautious in the Iraq arena realizing that 'The Surge' worked and they were on the wrong end of that issue. Focus is being put on a timeline for troops coming home, a position that most of the American population favors.

Democrats believe it is their race to lose, but also realize they had a good chance to win the last two Presidential elections and came up short each time. General wisdom also states that a poor economy favors Obama, so they will try to paint a dire picture in this area. As in past elections, differences between those who have obtained a high income level and those who have not will be emphasized. In fact, the Democratic strategy in many ways mirrors that of their strategy in 1992 when the Democrat-controlled Congress deliberately caused economic disruption, knowing full well that the public would blame sitting president George H.W. Bush, and thereby allowing Bill Clinton to win that year's presidential race.

Favored by the young, Democrats will try hard to encourage and get out the young vote, a task that has proven more difficult than expected in the last two election cycles. To their advantage, Obama made his vice presidential pick via text message to cell phone numbers registered on the site. The announcement went to 3 million cell phones, a useful database for "Get Out The Vote" (GOTV) efforts, when voters may not be home or reachable on their landline.

As an extension of the DNC's strategy in the 2006 elections, led by Howard Dean, Barack Obama has been working towards a "50-state strategy." The campaign is working to place campaign offices throughout the country with a focus on voter registration. The increase in the rolls of Democratic voters from the primary battle between Hillary Clinton and Obama played out well for the Democrats and puts pressure on Senator McCain even in typically red states, and more specifically, "Lean Republican" states, to use the Cook Political Report's term. In addition, with a fundraising advantage, Obama is airing ads in those tight states forcing McCain to make decisions about whether to use funds to match ads and campaign efforts in those states or rely on historical results that those states will support him and focus funds in traditional toss-up states instead.

Fundraising

Barack Obama had a significant edge over Hillary Clinton in the fundraising department during their contest for the Democratic nomination, but both actually set records for raising money and both raised far more money than John McCain. McCain didn’t have to spend as much since he locked up the Republican nomination much earlier than Obama locked up the Democratic. Both Obama and McCain said they would accept government funds--which would also cap how much the candidates could raise on their own--but Obama, who could presumably raise more through his own sources, changed his mind and later declined. Much of McCain’s war chest will come from the Republican Party in general, which has more money to spend than their Democratic counterparts. McCain’s campaign raised $47 million in August, a very sizable figure for him so far and a personal record, but not as strong as Obama’s best months. In the same time period, Obama set a record with $66 million. Obama, still having an edge in fundraising that has continued throughout his run for the Presidency, saw $10 million collected the day after Sarah Palin’s strongly received convention speech, a new one day record. The Palin announcement has been good for John McCain's fundraising as well.

Obama set a new record of $150 million raised in September and over $600 million overall. Obama's camp does not release information on who contributes to the campaign.

Election Politics

As a general truth, political parties will put on their best face, but stoop to almost any level to make their candidate win. This election is no exception as the Democratic party has taken to busing in homeless people in Ohio to register them and have them vote on the same day, then bus them back. A loophole in the law permits this without checking identification, and that loophole is being exploited for political gain.

Conventions

Democratic National Convention

The 2008 Democratic National Convention was held in Denver, Colorado, from August 25 to August 27 at Pepsi Center. There, Senator Obama and his running mate were selected to be the party nominee's. Barack Obama will accepted the party's nomination in front of a crowd of more than 75,000 in a free, open event held at INVESCO Field at Mile High, in a platform resemblant to a Greek temple. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is the Permanent Chair of the Convention.

The convention had a rocky start as friction between supporters of Obama and the Clintons was not resolved. Instead of Obama getting a bump in the polls, his support actually declined. The Democrats also seemed to be at odds on finding a unifying strategy for how hard to attack John McCain and how to present it. As Democratic pundit James Carville said in an interview on CNN, "If this party has a message, it's done a <heck> of a job hiding it tonight, I promise you that."

A bleak convention was turned around by the Clintons. Infighting between Obama and Hillary continued through the day of her speech, but a comprise was reached, and, beyond expectations, she gave a rousing speech for Obama - possibly as an angry response to McCain's latest ad that showed her 'supporting' him. Bill Clinton the next night also praised Obama, something that he failed to effectively do in 2000 for Al Gore when he centered on his accomplishments and gave little more than lip service to Gore with statements amounting to 'and Al Gore was there too'. The convention, possibly remembering that, gave him the topic he was to speak on instead of choosing his own. Clinton was angered, but it worked. He came through. By the time Obama spoke on the last night, the theme that was missing at first was clear, and Obama mixed a message of attacking McCain with the need for change and even outlining some expensive programs that would appeal to the target populace who has been lukewarm to him. From a political point of view, the convention did what it was supposed to.

Convention Schedule

Monday 8/25 (Theme: One Nation):

• Former President Jimmy Carter
• Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, D-California
• Congressman Jesse Jackson, Jr., D-Illinois
• Mayor John Hickenlooper, D-Denver
• Senator Amy Klobuchar, D-Minnesota
• Mayor Manny Diaz, D-Miami
• Illinois state leaders Alexi Giannoulis, Dan Hynes, Lisa Madigan
• Tom Balanoff from Illinois SEIU
• National Education Association (NEA) President Reg Weaver
• AFT President Randi Weingarten
• NARAL Pro-Choice America President Nancy Keenan
• Senator Claire McCaskill, D-Missouri
• Former State Representative Lee Hamilton, D-Indiana
• Chicago City Clerk Miguel del Valle
• Maya Soetoro-Ng - Barack Obama's half-sister
• Jerry Kellman - "Mentor and long-time friend of Barack Obama"

Tuesday 8/26 (Theme: Renewing America's Promise):

• Senator Patrick Leahy, D-Vermont
• Governor Joe Manchin, D-West Virginia, Chair of the Democratic Governors’ Association
• Governor Chet Culver, D-Iowa
• California State Controller John Chiang
• Change to Win’s Anna Burger
• AFL-CIO President John Sweeney
• Planned Parenthood of America President Cecile Richards.
• Pay Equity pioneer Lilly Ledbetter
• Governor Brian Schweitzer, D-Montana
• Governor Deval Patrick, D-Massachusetts
• Governor Kathleen Sebelius, D-Kansas
• Governor Janet Napolitano, D-Arizona
• Governor Jim Doyle, D-Wisconsin
• Governor Ed Rendell, D-Pennsylvania
• Governor Ted Strickland, D-Ohio
• Governor David Paterson, D-New York
• Senator Bob Casey, Jr., D-Pennsylvania
• Former Secretary of Energy and Transportation Federico Peña
• House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, D-Maryland
• House Democratic Caucus Chair Rahm Emanuel, D-Illinois
• Representative Xavier Becerra (D-California), Assistant to the Speaker of the House;
• Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) Chair Chris Van Hollen
• Representatives Nydia Velazquez (D-New York)
• Linda Sanchez (D-CA)
• Tammy Baldwin (D-WI)
• Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC)
• Mike Honda (D-CA)
• Senator and former Presidential candidate Hillary Clinton (D-NY)
• Former Governor Mark Warner (D-VA)--Keynote Speaker

Wednesday 8/27 (Theme: Securing America's Future):

• Former President Bill Clinton
• Governor Bill Richardson, D-New Mexico
• Senator John Kerry, D-Massachusetts
• Former Senate Minority Leader Tom Daschle, D-South Dakota
• Senator Jack Reed, D-Rhode Island
• Mayor Richard Daley, D-Chicago
• Senator Evan Bayh, D-Indiana
• Senator Joe Biden, D-Delaware
• Senator Jay Rockefeller, D-West Virginia
• Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nevada
• Senator Ken Salazar, D-Colorado
• House Majority Whip James E. Clyburn, D-South Carolina
• Congressman Robert Wexler (D-Florida)

Thursday 8/28 (Theme: Change You Can Believe In):

• Colorado Governor Bill Ritter
• Former Vice President Al Gore
• Presidential nominee Barack Obama

Republican National Convention

The 2008 Republican National Convention was held in Saint Paul, Minnesota from September 1 (Labor Day) until September 4. The presumptive nominee was Senator McCain. The location has political significance in that Minnesota will likely be a close state during the general election, as will it's neighboring states Wisconsin and Iowa.

The convention schedule had to be altered due to the upcoming landfall of Hurricane Gustav. The first day almost entirely focused on raising money for Hurricane relief. This led to a shortened three day convention instead of four and there was some shuffling of who was speaking on which day to accommodate the suddenly shortened time span. In a surprise, George W. Bush was only delivered an eight minute speech by satellite. In another surprise Sarah Palin's speech was watched by as many people as saw Obama give his acceptance speech on the closing night of the Democratic convention, as over 40 million people tuned in. She was considered the highlight of the convention, even surpassing John McCain's speech the next day, and was noted for doing an exceptional job. Recognizing the strong asset that they have in her, the Republicans made reference to her many times on the last day of the convention. McCain, not known for being comfortable reading prepared speeches in a convention hall, delivered a solid speech. While Obama continued to enjoy a lead in the polls, it changed quickly thereafter to a slight McCain-Palin edge. The Republican convention more than canceled out a very powerful Democratic convention.

Convention Schedule

Monday 9/1 (Theme: Service):

• RNC Chairman Mike Duncan

• First Lady Laura Bush

• Cindy McCain

Tuesday 9/2 (Theme: Reform):

• Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, Keynote speaker

• Governor Jon Huntsman, R-Utah

• Governor Linda Lingle, R-Hawaii

• Governor Sarah Palin, R-Alaska

• Former Gov. Mike Huckabee, R-Arkansas

• Former Gov. and Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge, R-Pennsylvania

• Former Lt. Governor Michael Steele, R-Maryland

• Senator Tom Coburn, R-Oklahoma

• Former Sen. Fred Thompson, R-Tennessee

• House Minority Leader John Boehner, R-Ohio

• Congressman Marsha Blackburn, R-Tennessee

• Congressman Luis Fortuño, R-Puerto Rico

• Congressman Adam Putnam, R-Florida

• State Sen. Dennis Hollingsworth, R-California

• Rosario Marin, California Secretary of the State

• Chris Collins

• Carolyn Dunn

• Phil Hayes

• Lisa Keegan

• Ruth Novodor

• Dr. Elena Rios

• Shirley Sadler

• Joe Watkins

Wednesday 9/3 (Theme: Prosperity):

• Cindy McCain

• Republican Party’s Vice Presidential Nominee

• Governor Bobby Jindal, R-Louisiana

• Former Gov. Mitt Romney, R-Massachusetts

• Senator Norm Coleman, R-Minnesota

• Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison, R-Texas

• Congressman Mike Pence, R-Indiana

• Mayor Mick Cornett, R-Oklahoma City

• State Sen. Abel Maldonado, R-California

• Carly Fiorina, Victory ‘08 Chairman for the RNC, former Chairman and CEO of Hewlett-Packard Co.

• Meg Whitman, National Co-Chair for McCain 2008 and former President and CEO of eBay

• Renee Amoore*

• Anne Beiler*

• Jessica Colon*

• Christy Swanson*

• Raul “Danny” Vargas*

Thursday 9/4 (Theme: Peace):

• John McCain

• Governor Charlie Crist, R-Florida

• Governor Tim Pawlenty, R-Minnesota

• Senator Sam Brownback, R-Kansas

• Senator Lindsey Graham, R-South Carolina

• Senator Mel Martinez, R-Florida

• Former Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, R-Tennessee

• Congressman Mary Fallin, R-Oklahoma

• Michael Williams, Chairman of the Texas Railroad Commission

• David Flau

• Christopher Fussner

• Lt. General Carol Mutter, U.S. Marine Corps (Ret.)

• Charlie Smith

Vice Presidential Candidates

Democratic Vice-Presidential Candidate

On August 23rd, Senator Barack Obama announced, via text message to 3 million cell phone numbers of his supporters, his nomination of Joseph Biden to Vice President. Biden's selection was considered to be a prudent move by Obama, filling a hole in his own foreign policy experience that McCain could exploit. With the implosion of John Edwards, Biden was widely expected to be the choice. In order to help build up suspense, Biden said he was not chosen when he spoke to the press the day before, only to be shown as the Vice Presidential candidate the next day. A long-term senator and Washington insider with over two decades of service in the Senate, his earlier plagarism scandal was deemed to be less of a negative than the positive that his strong experience credentials could bring to the race.

Joseph Biden

Republican Vice-Presidential Candidate

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• Governor Sarah Palin of Alaska was announced as John McCain's choice early on Friday, August 29th, the day after the Democratic convention ended. A surprise choice not even considered by the press to be on McCain's short list, her selection caught the political world off guard. It had been expected that Mitt Romney would earn the honor, but McCain had other ideas. At first denigrated by the people in the Obama campaign, Obama's own statement was one of cautious neutrality to feel out what impact her selection would have on the race.

In an interesting twist, the selection of the Vice Presidential candidates changed the complexion of the race. By Obama picking Biden, he helped to fill the hole that McCain had been attacking dealing with a lack of foreign policy experience. McCain's strongest point, experience, would lose some of its luster. But the selection of Biden, and the passing over of Hillary Clinton, left another opening. By aligning himself with someone who has been a Democratic stalwart, Obama's claim to change became less pronounced. McCain seized upon that to select a Vice President that no one expected, and a woman, and steal some of the Democratic thunder. Her lack of experience would further cut into the experience angle that had been in play earlier, but her own maverick streak in becoming governor combined with John McCain's maverick choice in selecting her led to a new emphasis on McCain's own maverick past. Suddenly he saw an opportunity to steal the moniker of change that Obama had been wearing, and he went for it. Such a change in position occurring from the Vice Presidential selection in rare in Presidential politics.

Debates

Presidential Debates

Main Article: 2008 Presidential Debates

There have been three presidential debates for the 2008 election season. The first debate was held on September 26th, at the University of Mississippi. The topic for the debate was "Foreign Policy & National Security." The debate also talked in length about the economy. It was moderated by Jim Lehrer. The debate was a podium debate, broken into 9 nine-minute segments. The moderator introduced a topic, and then each candidate had 2 minutes to comment. Following their answers, there was 5 minutes of open discussion on the topic, facilitated by the moderator. The result was a statistical draw where both candidates did better than expected in the eyes of the public. The longer term impact worked out well for Obama who already had a lead going in, and benefited from solidfying that position.

The second debate was held on October 7th, at Belmont University in Nashville, TN. The moderator was Tom Brokaw, and the debate was in a town hall-style. The questions came from audience members and the Internet, as chosen by the moderator. After each question, the candidates will had two minutes each to respond, as well as a one-minute followup to the opposing candidate's response. Again the result was a statical draw as far as who was considered to be the winner. But with time running out for McCain, he needed something to make the poll numbers move, and that required a clear breakthrough.

The final debate was held on October 15th, at Hofstra University in Hempstead, NY. The topic for the debate was "Domestic and Economic Policy" and was moderated by Bob Schieffer. The candidates were seated at a table, as opposed to behind a podium, and the format followed that of the first debate. In addition, though, the candidates were given an opportunity to present a 90-second closing argument. Both candidates were again viewed as having done well, which was a tactical defeat for McCain as the poll numbers showed only small changes.

Vice Presidential Debate

There was one vice presidential debate held on October 2nd, at Washington University in Saint Louis, MO. The debate was moderated by Gwen Ifill. Palin did much better than expected, but Biden was also in top form. No clear winner emerged and the poll numbers remained largely unchanged, a strategic win for the Democratic ticket that only had to maintain their lead to win the election. Interestingly, the number of people who watched the debate was an alltime record for a Vice Presidential debate, and was viewed by more people than any of the three Presidential debates.

Third parties and Independents

Libertarian party

The Libertarian Party selected former Representative Bob Barr of Georgia as its 2008 presidential candidate on May 25, 2008. Former Democratic candididate Mike Gravel sought the Libertarian nomination but lost to Barr.

Barr has, on his campaign website, linked to a proposed Libertarian strategy laid out by a member of his campaign staff. Although Barr has not officially claimed this as his strategy, the link appears to be a tacit endorsement. The strategy is called the "gold states" strategy. Instead of waging a 50-state campaign with the aim of securing 270 electoral votes and an outright electoral college win, Barr would focus on about 18-20 states where neither Obama or McCain has strong support. Winning that number of states could net Barr from 180-200 electoral votes, and would exceed either Obama or McCain's number and prevent either of them from reaching 270. Under US Constitution Amendment 12, with no candidate having an electoral vote majority, the election would be thrown into the House of Representatives, which would have to choose the president from the top three electoral vote getters. At this stage, Barr could argue that as the top electoral vote recipient, he should become the President, and might draw support from conservative Democrats displeased with Obama's positions, and from Republicans who dislike McCain.

Although winning the largest number of electoral votes would assist Barr in making such an argument, it is not absolutely necessary. Given the close divide in the electoral vote in the 2000 and 2004 elections, Barr could throw the vote into the House by winning a handful of states to garner perhaps 15-20 electoral votes.

The House of Representatives currently has a Democratic majority, but it is important to note that under the US Constitution Amendment 12, the vote is not a straight vote of the members of the House. Instead, each State gets one single vote, and that vote is determined by the members from that State. Although many large states like California and New York have large Democratic majorities, these will be balanced by the many smaller Southern and Midwestern states with Republican majorities. A handful of states have an even number of House members, and are split down the middle for control.

Constitution Party

The Constitution Party held its convention in Kansas City, Kansas, on April 24 through April 27. The party nominated Pastor Chuck Baldwin over former U.N. Ambassador and Republican presidential candidate Alan Keyes.

Green Party

Cynthia McKinney, who was defeated in her bid for re-election to the U.S. House of Representatives after voting against the Iraq War and being arrested on battery charges after striking a Capitol Hill police officer, won the environmentalist Green Party's nomination for president at the party convention July 12, 2008. Running for Vice President on the Green ticket is "Hip-Hop activist and journalist" Rosa Clemente.

Independents

Ralph Nader announced his independent candidacy for president on February 24, 2008, to focus on "stem[ming] corporate crime and Pentagon waste and promot[ing] labor rights", issues he feels are ignored by the main parties. His running mate is former President of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors Matt Gonzalez.

New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg has been frequently mentioned as a possible independent candidate for the 2008 presidential election and fueled that speculation when he left the Republican Party in June 2007. However, he declared in a February 28, 2008, op-ed article in The New York Times, "I am not—and will not be—a candidate for president," but added that "[i]f a candidate takes an independent, nonpartisan approach—and embraces practical solutions that challenge party orthodoxy—I’ll join others in helping that candidate win the White House."

Historical Information

Withdrawn Republican Party Candidates

• Senator Sam Brownback, Kansas, withdrew October 19, 2007, citing a lack of funding. Brownback also had done poorly at key conservative milestones, such as the Value Voters Debate. He endorsed Senator John McCain of Arizona.
• Former Governor Jim Gilmore, Virginia, withdrew July 14, 2007 due to lack of funds.
• Former Mayor Rudolph Giuliani, New York City He withdrew after a defeat in Florida, on which he had depended on heavily. He endorsed John McCain afterwards.
• Former Governor Mike Huckabee, Arkansas. He withdrew from the race once McCain received the 1,191 delegates needed to win the nomination. He also promised to support McCain as the nominee, thus giving his endorsement to him.
• Representative Duncan Hunter, California 52nd, withdrew January 19, 2008 and endorsed Governor Mike Huckabee.
• Representative Ron Paul, Texas 14th, withdrew June 12, 2008. He has since encouraged people not to vote McCain and vote third party .
• Former Governor Mitt Romney, Massachusetts, suspended his campaign after poor showings on Super Tuesday and later endorsed John McCain.
• Representative Tom Tancredo, Colorado 6th, withdrew December 20, 2007. He endorsed fmr. Governor Mitt Romney of Massachusetts.
• Former Senator Fred Thompson, Tennessee. He endorsed John McCain of Arizona.
• Former Governor and HS Secretary Tommy Thompson, withdrew August 12, 2007. He endorsed fmr. Mayor Rudy Giuliani of New York.

Potential Republican Candidates Who Declined to Run

• Former Senator George Allen, Virginia - endorsed Fred Thompson.
• Former Governor Jeb Bush, Florida - endorsed John McCain.
• Vice President Dick Cheney
• Former Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, Tennessee
• Former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich, Georgia
• Senator Chuck Hagel, Nebraska
• Former Governor George Pataki, New York
• Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice
• Governor Mark Sanford, South Carolina
• Former Senator Rick Santorum, Pennsylvania

Withdrawn Democratic Party candidates

• Senator Joseph Biden, Delaware He withdrew after a disappointing finish in the Iowa Caucus. He became Senator Obama's running mate.
• Senator Hillary Clinton, New York Suspended her campaign after Obama reached the number of needed delegates. She endorsed him shortly afterwards.
• Senator Chris Dodd, Connecticut He withdrew after a disappointing finish in the Iowa Caucus and later endorsed Senator Barack Obama.
• Former Senator John Edwards, North Carolina. He withdrew after losing in all of the early primary states. He later endorsed Senator Obama after Obama won the North Carolina primary.
• Former Senator Mike Gravel, Alaska. He withdrew to seek the Libertarian party nomination (which he lost to Bob Barr.) He also endorsed Green Party Candidate, Jesse Johnson.
• Representative Dennis Kucinich, Ohio 10th He withdrew to keep his seat in the House of Representatives.
• Governor Bill Richardson, New Mexico He withdrew after twin fourth-place finishes (in Iowa and New Hampshire) that showed his credentials could not compete with his rivals’ star power. He later endorsed Senator Obama.
• Former Governor Tom Vilsack, Iowa. He dropped out early in the race and endorsed Hillary Clinton of New York

Potential Democratic Candidates Who Declined to Run

• Senator Evan Bayh, Indiana - endorsed Hillary Clinton
• General Wesley Clark (Ret.) - endorsed Hillary Clinton
• Former Senate Minority Leader Tom Daschle, South Dakota
• Former Governor and current DNC Chairman Howard Dean, Vermont
• Senator Russ Feingold, Wisconsin
• Former Vice President Al Gore, Tennessee
• Senator John Kerry, Massachusetts - endorsed Barack Obama
• Rev. Al Sharpton
• Former Governor Mark Warner, Virginia

Primaries

For expanded primary information see United States Presidential Election, 2008 - Primaries

John McCain had to get his footing at first, but was pretty much assured the Republican nomination after Super Tuesday. Barack Obama had a much tougher road, but rode out a string of victories in February to eventually outlast Clinton and take the nomination. During that time he had raised more money than any other candidate in history giving him a huge boost, a trend that would continue into the general election.

See Also

• Articles about the 2008 Presidential Election from previous "Breaking News"