November 6, 2008

John McCain was elected as the 56th president of the United States when Barack Obama conceded the election late last night. McCain defeated Obama by a small margin of about 5%. The race was close in almost every state, but in the end it came down to Ohio and Florida and those state's 47 electoral votes. McCain ended the race with 294 electoral votes, 62 more than Obama’s 232 electoral votes.

In his concession speech, Barack Obama said, "America is in need of unity and longing for a larger measure hope."

McCain echoed Obama's desire for unity, and called out to the 50 million Americans who voted for his opponent, saying, "I will need your support and I will work to earn it. I will do all I can to deserve your trust." McCain also expressed optimism for America's future over the next four years. "Because we have done the hard work, we are entering a season of hope," the President said.

Eight months ago, no one could have imagined such an astonishing victory, as Obama steamrolled his fellow Democrats with victories in Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina. The Republicans were in disarray after Huckabee won Iowa, followed by McCain winning New Hampshire, Romney taking Nevada and Huckabee topping South Carolina. Business minded and security concerned Republicans then rallied around McCain, who was seen as the only viable candidate to wrestle independent voters away from Barack Obama. McCain eventually won the Republican nomination in late May after consecutive victories in West Virginia, Nebraska, Oregon and Kentucky.

Worried Republicans then focused their attention on Obama, who had spent months collecting money and attracting voters turned off by the bitter GOP primaries. Republicans quickly framed the general election battle around two issues: Foreign policy and experience. McCain’s experience as a Navy pilot and 22 years as a Senator were a direct contrast with Obama, who had only two years experience as a Senator and had never served in the military. The Republican machine hammered away at Obama, whose lack of experience was a concern for voters, especially older Americans. McCain’s catch phrase began to resonate with independents.

“There's a big difference between having experience and judgment — and not having it.”

McCain was also greatly aided by the success of the surge in Iraq. The fear of an Iraqi religious war died down over the summer as Bush's policy of engaging Sheiks instead of the government produced results. Obama’s claim that Bush was paying off the Sunnis with arms fell on deaf ears as Americans saw the number of casualties plummet. In the end, the Democratic candidate’s assertion that he “managed to get it right on Iraq in 2002" was undermined by the success of the war.

Still, Obama held the lead through August with his charismatic personality and “Politics of Hope.” Younger voters were drawn to Obama in unprecedented numbers, even greater than Bobby Kennedy, with whom Obama is often compared. Meanwhile, older voters supported McCain in large numbers, which became a running joke before McCain stump speeches.

“Should we take a nap first?”

Concern about Obama’s lack of experience heightened in late August, when President Pervez Musharraf of Pakistan was overthrown in a bloody coup by hard line General Nadeem Taj of the ISI and Turkey opened a front against the Kurds in Northern Iraq. Oil increased to $130 a barrel, bringing more hardship on Americans already suffering through a recession brought on by the housing crisis.

Unsure of the future, independents began to leave Obama. Many, like Matt Pearson, a waiter from Cleveland, Ohio, began looking for security over change.

"He could use a little more experience," he says. "A lot of the people I know say they really like him, but just don't think it's his time yet."

What could have been a tightly contested race, quickly turned to an easy victory for McCain on October 2nd, when 438 were killed in simultaneous subway attacks in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles and San Francisco. The subway attacks shifted the tone of the campaign. Americans began to support to McCain in large numbers as he promised justice against the Iranian government. Obama’s calls for a reasoned response were met with deaf ears.

Democrats had hoped that a large turnout of young voters would give them an advantage, but the large numbers were unable to overcome the soccer mom vote that went to McCain. Voters between the ages of 18 and 24 made up about 17% percent of the vote in 2004, 10% higher than in 2000. Voters between the ages of 18 and 29 made up about 24% of the vote, 7% more than in 2000. But the security minded soccer mom vote increased by 21%. Nationally, the turnout for all voters was the highest since 1968, at nearly 64%.

Obama’s young followers are saddened, yet understanding. Members of the Young Democrats were disappointed with the result of the election and said they planned to wear black on Thursday in support of Obama. The national president of the college group Christopher Samet said,

"I'm a little surprised, but I just hope America can move on, support our leader, and unite through this difficult time."

McCain took a modest tone in his victory speech on Wednesday,

"America has spoken, and I'm humbled by the trust and the confidence of my fellow citizens. With that trust comes a duty to serve all Americans. And I will do my best to fulfill that duty every day as your president."

His first test will be the war in Iraq, where large scale fighting suddenly broke out this morning between Sunni and Shiite factions after months of truce.

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