The Significance of the Election of 2008 in Light of the 2010 Elections - Research Paper Example

?Discuss the significance of the election of the 2008 in light of the elections Introduction In political history and political science, especially the US, the phrase political realignment refers to a dramatic transformation in the political system. This could include national elections which are characterized by sharp changes in party leaders, issues, demographics and regional bases of power. Looking at the 2008 US elections, the elections saw the implementation of many changes through the voting power of the voters. During this election, a junior black US democrat senator Barrack Obama received a landslide win over his white republican counterpart, John McCain. This essay critically compares the 2008 elections with the 2010 elections and the changes witnessed thereof. The 2008 versus the 2010 US Elections The political realignment witnessed during the 2008 elections finds its roots in the momentum gained after the 2006 elections. The 2006 election saw a great level of success for the democrats as compared to other recent years. Around this time also, the Bush administration was starkly facing the economic recession and financial crisis hence it was loosing its fame. The main theme during the 2008 campaigns became the desire for reforms and change from Washington and the policies of George W. Bush, the outgoing republican president. Just before the end of the campaigns, other main issues that emerged included the economy and other domestic policies (Kenski et al 225). Due to the realignment, the 2008 election recorded a huge number of notable changes as compared to other recent elections. For example, since 1928, the 2008 election was the first in which neither an incumbent president nor their vice participated in the presidential run. Jessee (198) states that it was also the first time since 1952 in which neither an incumbent vice or president was nominated as a candidate for the general national elections by his party. Most importantly in the American history, it was the first national election that has seen the election of an African American being elected as the US president. It was also the first time in history for a major party to nominate an African American for presidential candidate. Both the Republican Party and the Democratic Party parties elected candidates who were both born outside the contiguous US. This means that despite the still existent preference for white candidates, the voters concentrated much more on other candidate features such as their manifestos. During the same year, the black vote for the president and other seats was also one of the highest in history and it amounted to 11%. As compared to all other elections held within the last 40 years, the voter turn out during the 2008 elections was the highest. This trend continued in 2010 giving an increased turn-over for mid-term elections. The elected president, president Obama, also received the highest votes ever to be cast for a president in history. Abramson et al (218) explains that four years before the 2008 elections, 9 US states had changed their alliance. In 2004, each one of them had voted for the republican nominee hence their political realignment in 2008 contributed greatly to Obama’s victory because their votes shifted to his favor. In the 2008 elections, all 435 the seats in the House were up for election. Out of these 435 seats, the democrats managed to gain a total of 21 seats hence stepping up their majority from 54.3-59.1%. After the election, the democrats controlled 27 of the states whereas the republicans controlled only 14 of such seats. For the first time since the Great Depression, the Governor’s mansion was controlled by the democrats. In terms of demographies, both the parties got at least 40% from all sizeable socio-economic classes except for the republican candidate who got 37%. They also received equal attention from college students but more of post graduate students sided with the republicans (Kenski et al 264). Obama got a greater percentage of urban votes in all towns as compared to McCain. On his part, McCain got more votes in the suburban and rural areas. The Catholics and the more secular societies voted more for Obama as compared to McCain. During the 2008 elections, few black voters identified themselves as republicans. However, most of these demographics shifted to the republican side during the 2010 elections. These changes have been attributed to president Obama’s stimulus and healthcare reform bills which are considered controversial as well as the continued economic recession (Jessee 202). Therefore, it may be claimed the 2008 political realignment was not long lasting following a need for change by most people. The 2010 political realignment resulted in an unexpected win of the republicans over the democrats. Like many other mid-term elections, the political party that was not in power, in this case the Republican Party, gained ground. The result of this was a major defeat for the Democratic Party both at state and national levels. In fact, the number of seats won by republicans was the greatest ever since the year 1946. The republicans also broke the 1974 record set by the democrats by gaining a total of 6 seats. This left them to control 25state legislatures as compared to 15 controlled by the democrats. Generally, the Republican Party can be said to have made substantial gains all over the country. This therefore became a rollback of the great gains that the democrats had already made. In some places like North Carolina, the republicans won the control of the two chambers of the legislature for the first time in 140 years. Other regions which had previously favored the Democratic Party shifted into being strong supporters of the Republican Party. This indicates a shift in the political ideologies of the people between the years, 2008 and 2010. The great success during the 2006 then the 2008 success by democrats motivated the autonomy of the voters to always choose that which is much better for them than just sticking to party loyalty. The major shift from democrats to republican was also triggered by the views of the self-declared independent voters. Conclusion Though the 2008 US elections were a successful political realignment, it did not have a lasting impact as compared to the 1932 and 1980 elections. This is because the 2010 elections also recorded a good level of realignment as well. Most of the ideologies in the latter realignment are a raised alarm against the failures of the first realignment for example economic policies. Generally, it can be stated that since the 2008 elections voters have adopted the pattern of voting is one that brings change. It is realized that voters are no longer just seeking change in voting pattern in the phenomena of political realignment. Works Cited Abramson Paul, John Aldrich and David Rohde (2009). Change and Continuity in the 2008 Elections. Online: http://www.amazon.com/dp/1604265205/#reader_1604265205. Retrieved on 5th July, 2011. Jessee Stephen . “Voter Ideology and Candidate Positioning in the 2008 Presidential Election.” American Politics Research. (2) pp 195-210. Kenski Kate, Bruce Hardy and Kathleen Hall. The Obama Victory: How Media, Money, and Message Shaped the 2008 Election. Oxford. Oxford University Press. 2010. Read More