ABSTRACT
The 2008 presidential election was the longest, most expensive, and one of the most interesting contests in memory. It was the first truly wide-open election since 1952, and twenty major-party candidates declared themselves ready to be the next president. It was filled with familiar names, like John McCain, Hillary Clinton, and Rudy Giuliani, and had its share of little-knowns, like Tom Tancredo, Tommy Thompson, and Tom Vilsack. It featured a Democratic primary season that lasted far beyond anyone expected, not giving us a clear victor until June. We learned about the internal rules of party campaigning: the winner-take-all system of the Republican Party, which led to a relatively quick victory for McCain, and the proportional system of delegate selection in the Democratic Party that helped drag out the contests and gave a substantial boost to Barack Obama. We learned about Democratic super delegates, and how the selection of a nominee was not simply about amassing primary and caucus support. And we learned, again on the Democratic side, the importance of going after caucus delegates, not just focusing on big-state primary wins.
