Evaluation Note / Neslihan Kaptanoglu "2008 American Presidential Elections: An Overview"

On November 4, 2008, the United States of America will hold its 55th election for President and Vice President. Additionally, all 435 members of the US House of Representatives and one third of the United States Senate will also be up for election.

This day is particularly important in the US history because it will be the first time in eighty years that an incumbent will not be running for the office. In other words, it will be the first time that neither a current President nor Vice-President will be running. President George W. Bush is constitutionally barred from running for a third term and Vice-President Dick Cheney has declined to run. This makes the race wide open for both the Democrats and the Republicans.

Evaluating the current conditions, there are several factors that hurt the Republican Party's chances of holding onto the White House.