Today’s Election News Roundup

Ill. Sen. Barack Obama’s 30-minute, professionally produced campaign ad focused less on the candidate than it did on voters he hopes to win over. The $4 million commercial opened with highlights of him on the campaign trail, but went on to feature mostly middle-class voters and their practical concerns, illustrating how he would address the crucial problems facing many Americans—especially those living in swing states. 

Sen. Obama leads or is tied in the polls across most swing states. According to an AP-GfK battleground state poll, Obama is ahead in Ohio, Nevada, Colorado and Virginia—states President Bush won in 2004.

Analysis completed by the Associated Press has indicated that Sen. Obama will garner the 270 electoral college votes needed to win the election, even if Sen. McCain wins some of the states that are too close to call, which include Florida, Indiana, Missouri, North Carolina, and possibly Nevada and Ohio.   

Sen. Obama and Sen. John McCain are battling for a changing voter landscape in the South. The Dallas Morning News report suggests that the loosening of the GOP stronghold in the South results from “demographic shifts, a sagging economy and a crush of black voters.”

Although Pennsylvania seems like a long shot for McCain—it has voted for a Democratic president in the last four elections and has millions of new registered Democratic voters—the candidate has still been pushing hard for the Keystone State. Time magazine explains why the senator has remained optimistic about his chances in Pennsylvania.

Sen. McCain told Larry King that it would be, “a tiny, tiny, minority” of people who would cast a vote based on race. People will vote, “for the best of reasons, not the worst of reasons,” the candidate said.

The findingDulcinea 2008 Election Web Guide highlights the best online resources relating to the candidates and the election.

Project Vote Smart describes the process of nominating a presidential candidate, with concise descriptions of the convention, caucuses, primaries and the process of awarding delegates.

An overview of the role of delegates and superdelegates is presented by the Council on Foreign Relations.

Daily coverage of the 2008 Election is gathered from media sources across the political spectrum and presented by Real Clear Politics to provide up-to-the-minute coverage. The site publishes daily political transcripts, including addresses on the campaign trail and withdrawal speeches. It also constantly updates and compares polling reports from Rasmussen, Gallup, CNN, Pew Research, and other major media sources. Additionally, the site provides a 2008 Primary Delegate Count, which presents the delegate counts of each candidate.

NPR provides an interactive calendar of past primaries. Headline stories that detail the events of the primaries and campaigns accompany the primary map. In addition, NPR hosts a “National Delegates Total,” with an ongoing count of delegates won by each candidate.

Minnesota Public Radio’s online “President Survey” matches the political convictions of respondents with the candidates’ policies in order to help voters make an informed choice come election day.

The New York Times publishes a constant stream of articles from the Associated Press. These concise AP stories cover new developments on the campaign trail.

As election momentum picks up, the Times of London offers British readers a glossary of campaign jargon that will be of use to many Americans as well.

OpenSecrets.org compares the total campaign donations for each candidate and looks into the war chests to see where the money comes from.