President Obama comes into office on a wave of history—the first African-American President, recipient of more votes than any other candidate in American history, and among the youngest to hold the office. His election is the extraordinary final act of a dramatic election season, which saw Democrats further strengthen their majorities in Congress and the conventional wisdom turned on its ear more than once.

No other single volume can expose your students to the depth of analysis and expertise provided by The Elections of 2008’s impressive list of contributors. Available mere months after November 4, this volume provides an insightful look at the contests, their outcomes, and their implications for the future, with an eye to their historic nature. Chapter authors capture the drama as well as assess the importance of particular races—all the while analyzing the larger trends and effects of the election results.

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1. The Setting: Diversifying the Presidential Talent Pool, Michael Nelson
The 2008 presidential election produced the most diverse field of candidates in U.S. history. Americans elected their first African American president, and they seem ready to elect other candidates who do not fit the traditional profile of white, male Christian.

2. The Nominations: Rules, Strategies, and Uncertainty, Barry C. Burden
An unpredictable nomination process and differing political environments for the Republican and Democratic parties led to the nominations of John McCain and Barack Obama.

3. The Presidential Election: Change Comes to America, Gerald M. Pomper
One of the most dramatic elections in American history overcame the nation’s racial history, transformed voting patterns, altered campaign methods, and tested theories of voter behavior. In the midst of economic travail, the outcome possibly set the stage for new national electoral coalitions and a major shift in public policies.

4. The Presidency: The Unexpected Competence of the Barack Obama Administration, Paul J. Quirk and Bruce Nesmith
Obama entered the White House with extraordinary skills, an experienced team, broad public support, and an intention to govern as a centrist. However, he must work with a Congress that has no political center from which he can draw support, and he faces challenges that may have no solutions.

5. The Congress: The Second Democratic Wave, Gary C. Jacobson
The 2008 congressional elections extended the pro-Democratic national tide that gave the Democrats control of Congress in 2006, and they did so largely for the same basic reason: ever deepening public unhappiness with the Bush administration’s performance.

6. The Media: Coloring the News, Marjorie Randon Hershey
Despite widespread charges of a pro-Obama bias, mainstream media coverage of Obama featured themes promoted by the Republican campaign to a greater extent than its coverage of McCain repeated Democratic themes. What the Obama campaign did have was a clear edge in the use of such media as text messaging and such social networking sites as YouTube.

7. Voting Behavior: A Blue Nation?, Nicole Mellow
An economic crisis helped Democrats secure their biggest victory in more than forty years. Yet despite Democratic success, voters’ partisan loyalties largely sustained the red versus blue division of the country that has prevailed in other recent elections.

8. Campaign Finance: Fundraising and Spending in the 2008 Elections, Marian Currinder
Disproportionately heavy spending on behalf of Democratic candidates and causes, combined with difficult political circumstances, proved too much for Republicans in 2008. Many aspects of campaign finance remained constant, however, despite all the talk of change.

9. The Meaning of the 2008 Election, David R. Mayhew
An absence of incumbent candidates, a customary bent toward homeostasis in the electorate, a good showing by Barack Obama among all races, and the Wall Street crash all shaped the Democratic victory of 2008.

“My students loved the previous edition of this book. They found the articles accessible, timely and balanced. I appreciated the authors' ability to place the election results and related developments in the proper historical context, and how their analysis drew upon the latest political science research. With the same superb set of authors returning for this edition, I will undoubtedly assign Elections of 2008 to my presidency course."

“The Elections of 2008 offers rich and timely analysis of the how the 2008 presidential and congressional campaigns unfolded, their outcomes, and a rich preliminary analysis of what the 2008 elections mean for the future of U.S. politics. Going beyond the popular understanding of the race as ‘historic,’ the volume’s authors analyze what changed – and what didn’t – from previous elections to lay the foundation for understanding what’s at stake in 2012, and beyond.”

“Michael Nelson and his team of regulars and newcomers have hit another home run. The Elections of 2008, as with previous editions, is certain to become a staple in Voting, Elections and Campaigning classes either as main text or supplement. Coming in so soon after the campaign dust has settled, the readability and detail of this volume are amazing. I'll certainly use this again in my classes.”

“The Elections of 2008 is a great supplement for my Campaigns and Elections class. Each chapter provides stimulating, and timely analysis written by top scholars in their fields, and there is a chapter to match each of the major topics in my class. While students appreciate the up-to-date material, as their instructor, I appreciate how the events of the recent elections are also put into a broader, more historical context.”

Michael Nelson is the Fulmer Professor of Political Science at Rhodes College and a Senior Fellow of the Miller Center of Public Affairs at the University of Virginia. His recent books include: The Presidency and the Political System, 9th Ed., The American Presidency: Origins and Development, 1776-2011, 6th Ed. (with Sidney M. Milkis); and The Elections of 2008. More than fifty of his articles have been reprinted in anthologies of political science, history, music, and English composition, including articles on subjects as varied as baseball, C. S. Lewis, and Frank Sinatra.