US Presidential Election 2008

Politics1 outlines all of the candidates who are running, as well as any who are possible contenders. You’ll get a brief political and personal synopsis of each candidate, links to Web sites that cover the candidate (both positively and negatively), and contact information.

The Online NewsHour from PBS offers election coverage with dense background information about each candidate. You’ll find biographical content as well as links to coverage of their campaigns. These articles, which are presented chronologically, make it easy to track any evolving campaign. Browse through the site for constantly updated coverage. Don’t miss “States to Watch” for detailed calendars of the primaries and caucuses.

Project Vote Smart offers detailed information about many elected American officials. Enter the last name of the candidate who interests you into the search box and you’ll get background information, including outlines of candidate biographies, positions, campaign finance, interest group ratings, voting records, speeches and public statements. Links to candidates’ Web sites are listed along with links to the official Web sites of any committees the candidate is on.

YouTube offers a unique approach to candidate coverage. You get a brief synopsis of each candidate along with video postings of moments from his or her campaign. Visit “Comments” to see what users are saying about candidates, or to participate in the discussion yourself.

OnTheIssues.org lists the actions candidates have taken on specific issues throughout their careers. To see where candidates currently stand on a specific topic, visit the “Issues” section on the left side of the homepage. Virtually all major political issues are covered on this site, including “Budget & Economy,” “Civil Rights,” “Drugs,” and “Education,” to name a few. Click any candidate's name for a voting record, along with explanations of each vote he or she made. 

The U.S. Senate provides links to and contact information for all of the U.S. Senators. Because all of the current candidates serve in the Senate, this is a worthwhile resource for getting contact information, or for visiting a candidate's official Web page. Use this site to track voting records as well.

The Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life profiles each candidate’s religious affiliations and beliefs. You’ll get a background of his or her religious stance, along with a list of “Must Reads”—articles or books that further outline the candidate’s faith.

CNN.com offers some of the most thorough coverage of Election 2008. You’ll get candidate bios, including spending patterns and polls. Visit  “States to Watch” for statistics and news about the most influential states in the primaries. Go to “Issues” to see where each candidate stands on the major concerns of the nation. Or check out “Debates” to view videos or to read transcripts of past debates. Scroll down for “Campaign News and Analysis," which hosts the latest headlines and links to up-to-the-minute political blogs.

The New York Times has an extensive index of candidate information along with articles and photographs that give detailed, up-to-the minute coverage of the campaign trail and election discussions. Its political blog, “The Caucus,” stays abreast of the most current, essential topics. Spend time browsing the wealth of archived articles, voting records and financial information provided by the site. You may have to register for free access to some of the older content. Note that the Times has a liberal slant.

FoxNews.com offers headline news with a conservative slant. Track the polls, fundraising, delegate counts and other candidate-specific information by visiting "Candidates." Visit "Blog Spot" for blogging form the Fox News team.

BBC News offers a look at the U.S. election from a foreign perspective. This U.K. paper provides complete and thoughtful coverage, including headlines, analysis and background information on the remaining candidates.

Politico covers the politics of Capitol Hill. Because it is primarily dedicated to Washington politics, this site gets into the nitty-gritty details of the upcoming presidential election. Articles that speculate on possible running mates for candidates and discussions of which states are most crucial to the primaries are some examples of the specificity offered here.

Real Clear Politics aggregates the day's biggest headlines from both national and international sources. You'll find polling reports, op-eds and breaking news all in once place. News topics are arranged by category, allowing you to browse the happenings of the Clinton, Obama and McCain campaigns.

Comedy Central ’s Indecision 2008 offers surprisingly detailed news coverage. Video streams of interviews are supplemented by coverage of the latest headlines—with a comical bent, of course. Links to legitimate news sources like The New York Times offer election coverage plus commentary. The site calls itself “Something approximating election news with something approximating honesty.”

PolitiFact , presented by the St. Petersburg Times, is dedicated to clarifying the truth behind the candidates. Visit “The Truth-O-Meter” for illustrated scales of honesty: the site fact-checks and exposes the truth or lack thereof behind the candidate’s recent claims. Also look for coverage of the facts being discussed during the campaign trail.

Dave Leip’s Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections is a vast, interactive tool that allows visitors to participate in mock elections. The site tracks this information in its “Presidential Predictions 2008” map. You can cast your vote in the current primaries or look at past mock elections for gubernatorial or senatorial predictions.

Des Moines Register.com has an extensive section on the caucus process and its history. Although this is an Iowa publication, the background information it offers on caucuses is comprehensive and applies to caucuses nationwide. You'll find out about how to participate in caucuses throghout the county. The Des Moines Register also has a section on its history covering presidential debates, which gives great insight into the primary process.

Project Vote Smart presents this article “How Does the Primary Process Work?” You’ll find out what a caucus is and how it fits into the presidential primaries at large.

The Green Papers present a glossary of terms, rules, and regulations that define the presidential primary process. This site offers a thorough, complex look at the many aspects of a caucus. Topics include “Delegate Counting Definitions,” “Loophole Primary,” and “2008 Modified Primary or Caucus.”

The Council on Foreign Relations explains the role of delegates during the primary process, including how Democratic and Republican delegates are selected, what constitutes a “superdelegate,” and how independent voters are represented in the election process.

CNN Politics.com provides this “Delegate Explainer,” a colorful chart of the number of delegates of each party. The chart highlights how many delegates are needed for each candidate to win. Go to “Winning Delegates” for a pie chart of electoral numbers: you’ll see the percentages of delegate, superdelegate, and popular votes that go into determining the Democratic election, and what percentages are needed for the “winner-take-all” system used by the GOP.

AlterNet

Campaign Finance , a Web site of the Hoover Institution’s Public Policy Inquiry initiative, explains the history and current structure of campaign finance. You’ll find information on Supreme Court cases, reform proposals and reform legislation. In addition, a “Who’s Giving To Whom” section lets you trace campaign finance in some past presidential elections. 

The New York Times  presents this archive of articles in its “Times Topics” section on campaign finance. You’ll find archived articles that chart the course of campaign finance through this election cycle and beyond.

NewsMeat presents a list of candidate campaign funds and their donors. Click a candidate's name, and an alphabetical list of donors appears. Click the donor's name for background information, plus the date of the donation.

The Federal Election Commission is a government organization whose charge is to administer and enforce federal campaign finance laws. This site maintains detailed records of candidate funding. Go to “Disclosure Data Search” for information on candidate and party summaries. You can also do an individual search for specific donors or search by committees or organizations that have donated. Or use the “Candidate Search” option to look up specific candidate records.

Common Cause is an organization dedicated to "holding power accountable." This site explains the imbalance in political spending and campaign finance; it details how huge corporate contributions put corporate interest before the rights and needs of individual citizens. The site makes it easy to learn about the issue and get involved, either through a free membership or by signing petitions. 

The Campaign Finance Institute is a nonpartisan organization affiliated with The George Washington University. The Institute conducts objective research on corporate finance and seeks to educate the public on the importance of policy change in the field of campaign finance. You’ll get updates on the issue as well as current studies that highlight how each party handles its campaign finances.

USA.gov explains how American citizens can best volunteer and contribute to an election. Visit the link to “Supporting Federal Candidates: A Guide For Citizens,” as well as “Volunteering Personal Services in Federal Elections.” The site also lets you track campaign contributions for all the 2008 presidential candidates by state. In addition, you can follow political activity by federal government employees as well as that of state and local government employees.