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.

Timeline

Early fundraising and primaries

Candidates of the Constitution, Democratic, Green, Libertarian, Republican, Socialist and other parties have begun making their plans known as early as 2005, and candidates will emerge during 2006 and 2007 because of the long lead time for fund-raising. Federal election laws require the reporting of funds raised for the primary elections, and in the past the media has anointed "front-runners" on the basis of reported fund-raising totals. For example, this occurred with Howard Dean in the 2004 electoral cycle although he was initially considered a long-shot.

Related Topics:
Constitution - Democratic - Green - Libertarian - Republican - Socialist - Howard Dean

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Beginning in January 2008, the first primary contests will be held in Iowa (caucus) and New Hampshire (primary) and perhaps other states to select delegates to the party conventions.

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The primaries continue through June, but in previous cycles, including 2004, the candidates were effectively chosen by the March primaries.

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Later events

• late June – late August, 2008. Party conventions formally select candidates.
• November 4, 2008 - Election Day
• December 15, 2008 - Members of the U.S. Electoral College meet in each state to cast their votes for President.
• January 6, 2009 - Electoral votes officially tallied before both Houses of Congress.
• January 20, 2009 - Inauguration Day

While it is rare for candidates to officially declare their candidacy prior to late in the year preceding the presidential election (in this case, 2007), some potential candidates may have expressed their interest in running, and are listed below. At this early stage, many of the strongest candidates might have yet to emerge, and these lists include few of the political figures who excite speculation amongst political activists, insiders, and media commentators.

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