1-Minute Overview - 2008 Election

Last updated on: 3/5/2009 9:06:00 AM PST

1-Minute Overview

"Which candidate would make the best US president?"

About This Topic

Our readers asked, and ProCon.org agreed, that it was time Americans had a reliable and easy-to-use source to understand the presidential candidates better and to learn where each candidate stands on important issues.

The next US presidential election will be held on Nov. 4, 2008 and, similar to other presidential elections, it will be a major battle of ideas and dollars. The US president is considered by many to be the most powerful position on earth.

According to the US Constitution, any "natural born" US citizen over age 35 who has lived in the US for 14 years can run for president of the United States. Some of the President's duties/roles include:

Commander in Chief of armed forces
Head of the Executive branch of federal government
Signing Congressional bills into law or vetoing them
Making treaties with foreign governments (with 2/3 approval of Senate)
Appointing federal officers, ambassadors, and federal judges including Supreme Court justices
Granting pardons or reprieves
Using the power of his/her office to shape public opinion

In Mar. 1845, Congress declared that presidential elections would be held on "Election Day" - the Tuesday after the first Monday in Nov. of every fourth year, starting in 1848.

The large amount of money being spent on advertising (for example, the Democrats spent $250 million and the Republicans spent $240 million in the 2004 presidential election) combined with partisanship, dirty campaigns, and biased or incomplete reporting often makes it difficult to figure out where candidates stand on important issues and, therefore, who to vote for.

Our website has created detailed biographies for each Democratic, Republican, and major third party/independent candidate. Our site shows their positions on abortion, the death penalty, gun control, war in Iraq, global warming, gay marriage, and about 20 other important topics.

This site also contains the candidate's position statements and, if their position changed, we have displayed their original and changed views. We archive each candidate's information as they withdraw from the race.

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