The
election to select the 44th President of the United States of America is
scheduled on November 4, 2008 and quickly coming upon us. The
president-elect and vice president-elect are scheduled to be inaugurated
on January 20, 2009 and on that date, George Bush’s tenure in the
Whitehouse will end after two terms spanning eight years as our nation’s
president.
The process to
select party delegates through primary elections, state caucuses, and
state conventions continues through June, though in past elections, the
nominees have often been determined by March. Notably, Dick Cheney
decided not to run for the presidency, stating on Fox News Sunday, “"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." As a result, this election
will mark the first election since 1928 where there is neither an
incumbent president nor vice president is running for the nomination.
This left a void in the Republican party which would eventually be
filled by US Senator John McCain of Arizona, who defeated other
Republican hopefuls such as Governor Mike Huckabee of Arkansas and
Governor Mitt Romney of Massachusetts. McCain's bipartisan compromise
on judicial nominations and his strong support of campaign finance
reform have cost him some support in the conservative republican
constituency, but his reputation as a veteran and war hero, conservative
values, and strong stance on the war against terrorism propelled him to
the republican nomination for presidential election. As for the
democratic nomination, US Senator and former First Lady Hillary Clinton
of New York and US Senator Barack Obama are locked in a fairly tight
race, having already eliminated other democratic candidates such as
Former Senator John Edwards of North Carolina. Running as an
independent is Ralph Nader, who ran as the Green Party presidential
nominee in 1996 and 2000, and in 2004 as the independent presidential
candidate