U.S. presidential election, 2008

The U.S. presidential election of 2008 is scheduled to occur on November 4, 2008. The election will determine the 44th {{ref|Bush}} President of the United States. The allocation of electoral votes to each state will remain the same for this election as it was for the election in 2004, relying on the 2000 Census. The winner will be sworn-in on January 20, 2009.

Other people mentioned as possible candidates

Democrats

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• Barbara Boxer received 6.9 million votes in her 2004 re-election for a third term as U.S. Senator representing the State of California, the highest popular vote in U.S. Senate history. Senator Boxer was the only Senator to object to the certification of Ohio's Electoral College votes on January 6,2005 http://www.thegreenpapers.com/G04/EC-Tabulation.phtml, http://boxer.senate.gov/news/record.cfm?id=230450, (see 2004 U.S. election voting controversy and irregularities). She vehemently challenged Condoleezza Rice's eligibility to be Secretary of State http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2005/01/18/RICEBOXER.DTL, and is well known for her staunch liberal positions. In October 2002 Barbara Boxer voted against the joint resolution passed by the U.S. Congress to authorize the use of military force by the Bush Administration against Iraq. http://www.hlrecord.org/media/paper609/news/2002/10/24/News/Senator.Boxer.Defends.Vote.On.Iraq.Resolution-304772.shtml, http://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/roll_call_vote_cfm.cfm?congress=107&session=2&vote=00237, Barbara Boxer's PAC for a Change, Boxer 2008 Unofficial Website, President Boxer Gear, Grassroot Petition, Blog
• Phil Bredesen, governor of Tennessee.
• Mike Easley, governor of North Carolina.
• Al Gore, former U.S. vice president from Tennessee, and the 2000 Democratic nominee. In early 2005, reports, including that from Chris Matthews http://s8.invisionfree.com/Al_Gore_Support/index.php?showtopic=1980&view=findpost&p=6811251 and CBS News http://s8.invisionfree.com/Al_Gore_Support/index.php?showtopic=1901&view=findpost&p=6640243, said that Gore was considering a run in 2008. Gore has said several times that he doesn't "intend" to be a candidate again, but can't rule it out. He added more fuel to the fire in late April when he joined the heated debate over the Republican's threats to dismantle the filibuster rule in the Senate. Gore gave an hour long speech lambasting the GOP on that issue while hitting hot topics such as religion, the Tom Delay scandal, Iraq, and Social Security http://s8.invisionfree.com/Al_Gore_Support/index.php?showtopic=2474&view=findpost&p=7932723Al Gore 2008 Unofficial Website.
• Dennis Kucinich, Ohio Congressman, and 2004 Democratic primary candidate. A progressive, Kucinich has maintained a high profile and exhaustive schedule while being virtually ignored by the media. www.kucinich.us outlines his positions and platforms and keeps supporters informed. Kucinich threw his support behind Kerry in 2004 although a number of Kucinich's delegates refused to follow suit.
• Barack Obama, U.S. senator from Illinois, was the keynote speaker at the 2004 Democratic National Convention and is seen as a rising party star, who has been floated as a possible candidate for the presidency in 2008. However, he has said that he is "...not running for president in 2008. I mean, come on guys. The only reason I'm being definitive is because until I'm definitive you will keep asking me this question, but it's a silly question."http://www.suntimes.com/output/elect/cst-nws-sen04.html http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/archives/individual/2004_07/004397.php http://www.csmonitor.com/2005/0705/p09s01-cogs.html
• Al Sharpton of New York, Pentecostal minister, civil rights activist, former candidate for mayor of New York and for the Democratic nomination for U.S. senator from New York, and candidate for the 2004 nomination. When asked about 2008, he replied, "Don't get Hillary mad at me." http://www.villagevoice.com/blogs/powerplays/archives/001816.php

Republicans

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• Laura Bush, current First Lady of the United States, mentioned by Lynne Cheney on Larry King Live http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0505/30/lkl.01.html
• Dick Cheney, current Vice President of the United States, has cited his age and his health in repeated statments that he is not interested in the nomination http://www.weeklystandard.com/Content/Public/Articles/000/000/005/295zkwpw.asp and is generally not believed to be a potential candidate. However, Cheney has been mentioned as a "serious dark-horse candidate" http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,158419,00.html and as a two-term vice president would likely be considered to be the frontrunner, should he seek the nomination.
• Elizabeth Dole, U.S. Senator from North Carolina, former U.S. Secretary of Transportation under Ronald Reagan and U.S. Secretary of Labor under George H. W. Bush, wife of former Senator and 1996 Republican presidential candidate Bob Dole, ran for President in 2000, but dropped out of the race; won her Senate seat in 2002.
• Mike Pence, U.S. congressman from Indiana, chairman of the Republican Study Committee, has been mentioned in several articles http://thehill.com/thehill/export/TheHill/News/Frontpage/031705/gop.html http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A54940-2005Mar21.html http://acuf.org/issues/issue21/040928news.asp lately as a rising star in the Republican party and as a presidential contender http://acuf.org/issues/issue34/050415pol.asp for 2008. There are already at least three websites up hoping to recruit Mike Pence into the 2008 race - http://mikepence2008.blogspot.com/, http://www.tblog.com/templates/index.php?bid=ajhankin, and http://presidential2008.blogspot.com/.
• Condoleezza Rice, currently the secretary of state, said on Meet the Press she wouldn't run for president, but there is a growing "draft Condi" movement. In a August 8-10 republican primary poll in Iowa, Rice came in first with 30 percent, dwarfing both John McCain and Rudolph Giuliani who both got about 15 percent
• Mark Sanford, Governor of South Carolina, is popular with fiscal conservatives, but has said he isn't running.
• Rick Santorum, U.S. senator from Pennsylvania. He has said that he does not intend to run , but hasn't ruled out the possibility. A number of polls include him as a possible Republican candidate.
• Christine Todd Whitman, former Governor of New Jersey, considered a moderate conservative, with "middle of the road" views.

Independents

• Vince McMahon, owner and CEO of World Wrestling Entertainment, appeared on his 2005 SummerSlam event in a Presidential limo with a McMahon for President banner although it may have been simply a humorous sketch given the event's location in Washington, DC.