ABOUT THIS BOOK

The 2008 election was an extraordinary event that represented change at many levels. The candidates’ innovative campaigns changed how funds were raised, how voters were mobilized, and how messages were communicated through advertising and the internet. Parties and interest groups played their own important role in this historic election. In The Change Election, David Magleby assembles a team of accomplished political scientists to provide an in-depth analysis of this groundbreaking presidential election. These scholars through a set of compelling case studies examine the competition for votes in a dozen competitive House and Senate contests and for the White House in five states: Ohio, North Carolina, New Hampshire, Colorado, and New Mexico.

Backed by a wealth of data, and extensive interviews, the contributors offer an up-close look at the interactions of candidates' individual skills and personalities with the larger political forces at work in the election year. The book offers insights into the rapidly evolving organizational and technical aspects of campaigning. The dramatic success Obama and other candidates had in raising money—especially from small donors—is addressed along with how money was raised and spent by the candidates, party committees, and interest groups competing for votes.

Building on a tested methodology, The Change Election explores the interplay of money and electioneering. Magleby builds on more than a decade of prior studies to show the ways participants in our electoral process have adapted to statutory and judicial decisions and how the 2008 election has the potential to transform American electoral politics.

AUTHOR BIOGRAPHY

David Magleby is Dean of the College of Family, Home, and Social Sciences and Distinguished Professor of Political Science at Brigham Young University. He has authored or edited over a dozen books, including books on campaign finance, ballot initiatives, party identification, and an American government textbook. He is a former American Political Science Congressional Fellow, was a Fulbright Senior Scholar at Nuffield College, Oxford University and served as President of Pi Sigma Alpha, the Political Science Honor Society.

REVIEWS

"When future historians look back on the 2008 election, they are certain to view it as a defining moment in American politics. David Magleby explains in detail why, in his well-documented book, The Change Election. This book is a must read for anyone interested in gaining a better understanding of the evolution of the election process in America."
—Rodney A. Smith, author of Money, Power, and Elections: How Campaign Finance Reform Subverts American Democracy

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Contents

List of Figures and Tables

Preface

1 A Change Election

2 How the 2008 Elections Were Financed

3 Elections as Team Sports: Spending by Candidates, Political Parties, and Interest Groups in the 2008 Election Cycle

4 Voter Mobilization in the 2008 Presidential Election

5 The Conditional Party Teams of the 2008 North Carolina Federal Elections

6 Shifting Granite: New Hampshire’s Change from Largely Republican to Largely Democratic over Two Election Cycles

7 The Battle for Ohio in 2008: The Politics of Pragmatism

8 Colorado: Democrats Expand Their Base and Win Unaffiliated Voters

9 Moving from Red to Blue: The 2008 New Mexico Presidential, Senate, and First Congressional District Races

10Continuity and Change in the 2008 Federal Elections

Appendix A: List of Studies

Appendix B: List of Interviews

Contributors

Index

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