What’s it got to do with us?
Okay, so these guys are not even our politicians. Why should we care? America is one of the big kids in the international community, so it’s a good idea to keep an eye on them because their choices can and do affect us. And it’s a pretty big choice this time – America is worried about the stability and future of its super-powerdom.
If you’re anything like the average American, you’ll be confused about who’s fighting who, and how their nutty election system works.
The basics:
America has two major political parties: the Democrats (who are a bit like our Labor Party) and the Republicans (who are similar to our Liberals). Democrats are known for having a more progressive outlook on issues, while Republicans tend to stick with traditional (and often faith-based) points of view. The presidential elections happen every four years, and each president is only allowed to serve two terms – which means they can’t be in office any longer than eight years.
Americans don’t have to vote if they don’t want to, and if you’ve ever been in jail, you aren’t allowed to vote either. Dirty campaigns have taken advantage of this in the past, claiming that people from certain groups or cultures were “not registered” or “convicted felons” in order to sway the outcome of election day.
The voting process in each location is paid for with local funding, so every town does it differently. Some places use paper and pencils like we do, while others use lever-machines or card-punching machines which are dodgy and sometimes miscount the votes. The different systems make tallying the votes a pain, so computerised voting systems are planned for the future.
The election process:
The Democrats and Republicans often have several candidates who would like to run for president. To see who is going to lead each party through the elections, the parties each run their own mini-elections, called either a “primary” or a “caucus” in each state. Only voters who are also registered party members can vote in these mini-elections.
Primaries involve a secret vote, while in caucuses people choose their leader by standing on either side of a community hall, with the undecided voters in the middle. Then the candidates kiss-up to the middle guys and try to win their vote.
The candidate chosen by each party is called their nominee. The Democrat and Republican nominees then begin the real fight for the presidency. The whole process from primaries to election day takes a year of campaigning and lots of money.
Barrack Obama and Hillary Clinton:
The two candidates who were the most popular choice for leading the Democrats in 2008 were Barrack Obama, the young African American senator from Illinois, and Hillary Clinton, former first lady and senator for New York.
In America’s history there has never been either a female or an African American president, so the two candidates caused a lot of excitement and even anger from some intolerant communities.
The primaries battle between the two Democrat candidates was unusually fierce and got so much publicity that you could be forgiven for thinking they were from opposing parties. After many tough months, Obama won and became the Democratic nominee for president.
Barrack Obama and John McCain:
John McCain is the Republican presidential nominee. At first he was very unpopular, but the in-fighting between Obama and Clinton helped him out and as of September 2008 the two nominees are neck-and-neck.
Barrack Obama’s campaign platform is about change. His issues are government corruption, improving America’s international relationships and involving the community in government through the internet. He stands by standard Democrat health and education policies.
Obama’s vice president is Joe Bidden, a 75 year old Senator for Delaware. Bidden is an expert on the politics of international relationships.
In America, people have a lot of respect and national pride for those who have served in the military for their country. One of John McCain’s campaign strengths is therefore his military service. His major policy is to continue the War in Iraq. He supports Christian and family values, which are standard Republican policies.
Sarah Palin, the Governor of Alaska, will be McCain’s vice president if he wins. She is the second woman and the first Alaskan to ever to run for vice president. Palin is anti-abortion, is against the teaching of sex education, and the use of condoms. She believes that teenagers should practice sex-free lifestyles…despite the fact that her own teenage daughter is currently pregnant.
How do I know this?
Centre for American Women and Politics,
www.cawp.rutgers.edu , viewed 4 September 2008.
Shovelan J, ‘Palin Picked as Last Resort after Evangelical Revolt’ ABC Online
www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/09/03/2353903.html viewed 4th September 2008.
ABC News, ‘Clinton gets behind Obama, calls for unity’
http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/08/27/2347995.html viewed 3 September 2008.
Traugott M, ‘U.S. Election Procedures’
www.usinfo.state.gov/products/pubs/election04/procedure.html viewed 3 September 2008.
Wayne S, ‘Presidential Nominations and American Democracy’
www.usinfo.state.gov/products/pubs/election04/nominate.html viewed 4 September 2008.
Barrack Obama’s Official Website for the 2008 Electoral Campaign,
www.barackobama.com viewed 4 September 2008.
John McCain’s Official Website for the 2008 Electoral Campaign,
www.johnmccain.com viewed 4 September 2008.
