Today’s political world is not so focused on reflecting the majority of voters as it is pleasing them. Campaigns now ride on slogans instead of goals, and he who assembles the most of the masses wins, regardless of integrity. The stronger the campaign, the stronger the candidate, and the stronger the votes are which he receives.
The majority of campaigns rely on massive donations through soft money which are less regulated and allow special interest groups and political action committees to influence who has the resources and thus who has the power. This is not always the case, as seen in the 2008 Presidential Election where Barack Obama received an astronomical amount of donations via hard money from private citizens. With this money, ads can be funded, as well as workers on the campaign.
Another major factor to consider is whether or not the media wants one candidate to win. Media bias can swing both ways depending on where in the nation it lies and what source is delivering. A democrat running in Texas may find it rather difficult to win votes when the media swings right, be it for personal interest or to meet the interest of the public. Being in a two party system doesn’t leave much room for one to take a middle ground, so even if one must bite the bullet, one of two parties will almost always be the better choice over an independent campaign.
Yet all of this comes down to who comes out on Election Day and casts their ballots. Low voter turnout has been criticized as in issue in past years, and it has been claimed to be a sign of failing democracy. However, voter turnout in presidential elections tends to hover around 50%, only sinking below such numbers in 1996, and in 2008, we had the highest turnout since 1968, the year of the classic brawl between Richard “Don’t call me Dick” Nixon and Hubert “How do you like me now?” Humphrey.
The majority of campaigns rely on massive donations through soft money which are less regulated and allow special interest groups and political action committees to influence who has the resources and thus who has the power. This is not always the case, as seen in the 2008 Presidential Election where Barack Obama received an astronomical amount of donations via hard money from private citizens. With this money, ads can be funded, as well as workers on the campaign.
Another major factor to consider is whether or not the media wants one candidate to win. Media bias can swing both ways depending on where in the nation it lies and what source is delivering. A democrat running in Texas may find it rather difficult to win votes when the media swings right, be it for personal interest or to meet the interest of the public. Being in a two party system doesn’t leave much room for one to take a middle ground, so even if one must bite the bullet, one of two parties will almost always be the better choice over an independent campaign.
Yet all of this comes down to who comes out on Election Day and casts their ballots. Low voter turnout has been criticized as in issue in past years, and it has been claimed to be a sign of failing democracy. However, voter turnout in presidential elections tends to hover around 50%, only sinking below such numbers in 1996, and in 2008, we had the highest turnout since 1968, the year of the classic brawl between Richard “Don’t call me Dick” Nixon and Hubert “How do you like me now?” Humphrey.
- Michael "Kash Monkey" Lindh
