The presidential candidates wish you a Happy Holidays. Rough days for some of the candidates. Fun facts about the presidential candidates, страница 15

If New Hampshire holds its contest January 8, Iowa Democrats might feel obligated to move from the 14th to protect their status. Adding to the calendar chaos is Florida, which, along with Michigan, broke Democratic Party rules and moved its primary to January 29, the same day as the South Carolina Democratic primary. Now the South Carolina Democrats want to hold their primary on January 26. South Carolina Republicans are scheduled for January 19.

Confused? So are the candidates, journalists and poll workers who all need to know when the races will be held so they can do their jobs.

If that’s not enough, rumors abound that New Hampshire might move its primary back to December – meaning the first votes in the 2008 elections cycle would be cast in 2007. Stay tuned for more chaos.

Share your thoughts about the primary and caucuses system.

17 October 2007

How much does it cost to become president?

Do you need to be rich to run for president? “You don’t have to be a millionaire to run for president, but it certainly helps,” Larry Sabato, director of the Center for Politics at the University of Virginia told USINFO.

It looks like it has helped the campaigns of the top three Democrats and top four Republicans – all of whom are millionaires. Republican Mitt Romney has the most money, with an estimated worth between $190 million and $250 million. The former Massachusetts governor has spent about $17.5 million of this money on his campaign. Read more about the candidates' wealth here.

But can money buy you the presidency? Despite having the Heinz Ketchup fortune behind him, 2004 Democratic presidential nominee John Kerry failed to unseat President Bush, who has maybe one-tenth as much money. Similarly, Texas billionaire Ross Perot and Forbes magazine publisher Steve Forbes sank tens of millions of dollars from their own bank accounts into failed presidential bids in 1992, 1996 and 2000. So, as the saying goes, money isn’t everything.

Data released October 12 by the Federal Election Commission (FEC) show that the presidential candidates already have raised nearly $300 million and spent almost half of it. To see what the candidates raised in the last quarter, read this article.

Why do you think so many of the top candidates are wealthy? Share your comments.

16 October 2007

A Republican and a Democrat campaign ... together?

They are running against each other for the highest job in the United States. Being from two different political parties, they disagree on most issues. But, in what they called an unprecedented campaign event, Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden and Republican presidential candidate Sam Brownback held a joint event Friday in Des Moines, Iowa, to promote their plan for Iraq.

Their plan, which was supported in a nonbinding Senate resolution, calls for a federalized system of governance in Iraq. The federalized system would allow for local level control of regions, with a unified national capital.

"Joe and I might be running for the nomination of two different parties, but we agree on one thing: the American people want progress in Iraq and this represents a viable way forward to stability and success," Kansas Senator Brownback said in a joint press release. "Partisan politics must not come in the way of finding a solution to the war in Iraq," said Delaware Senator Biden.

Would you like to see more bipartisan campaign events? Do you think this will ever happen again? Send your questions and comments here.

16 October 2007

Will Al Gore run?

Al Gore has won an Emmy, an Oscar and now a Nobel Peace Prize – how about the presidency?

The former U.S vice president Al Gore and the U.N. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change share the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize for their efforts to publicize the effects of climate change. (Read more about it here.)