A Breakthrough in American Politics
The 2008 presidential election is what many consider to be a breakthrough in American politics. Some students and professors at Texas Tech say this election is different from all the rest.
Traditional models used by political scientists to predict election outcomes cannot be used in the 2008 election, said Gregg Murray, a political science professor who teaches classes about political behavior and voter turnout at Tech.
The race and gender situation of the democratic race has made it tough to tell who will be the next president, he said.
“It should be a slam-dunk year for the democrats,” he said. “But the diversity makes it difficult.” 
Murray said Barack Obama’s message of “hope” and his non-conventional campaign strategies have appealed to the younger generation of Americans.
But, he said, voters of all ages and races should be involved in the election, not just young voters.
“What we really want is for everyone to vote,” he said.
Craig Goodman, a political science professor at Tech, said the presidential election is unique on several levels. He said the democratic race is certainly drawing in new voters.
“The democratic candidates are presenting a different face for America,” he said.
Goodman said new technology has reshaped how candidates conduct campaigns.
“It’s truly remarkable how decentralized campaigns have become,” he said. “Technology has made it so much easier for people to get involved in a campaign on a local level.”
Goodman said the ability to campaign through text messaging, Web sites, and online communication sites, such as Facebook, have allowed candidates to reach people on their own terms.
“I think that has made politics far more attractive,” he said.
Jamie Davis, a junior agricultural leadership major from Dayton, Texas, said the diversity among the democratic candidates in the election has created a milestone in political history.
Davis said the increased involvement of celebrities in the election has a huge effect on the participation of young voters. She said issues, such as the war in Iraq, have significantly influenced voter turnout.
“It’s their families over there,” she said.
Charles Ivy, a freshman business major from Ft. Worth, said the presidential election is unique specifically because of the diversity among the democratic race.
“If a democrat gets elected, it’s going to be a first,” he said.
Ivy said many people are paying attention to the election as a result of decreased support of the current president.
“Everybody hates Bush and they just want to get rid of him,” he said.
Wade Parks, a junior civil engineering major from Tatum, New Mexico, said young people have not been targeted as strongly as they were in the 2004 election.
Parks said although it is important for young people to have a voice in the election, they shouldn’t vote merely for recognition.
“I think it’s important for people to have an educated vote,” he said.
The absence of two white, male candidates running against one another has made people pay attention to the election, Parks said.
“It’s an abnormal election,” he said.