Select2008 Blog - Comparing and tracking the 2008 presidential candidates

Select2008.com’s activity has accelerated ahead of the South Carolina’s primaries as a vast number of users turn to our site for help to choose their favorite candidate for the 2008 primaries. The website’s live polling statistics are now starting to yield some interesting facts. The audience’s geographic distribution is still concentrated on the West Coast (California and Washington states), New York, New England, and the Chicago area. Therefore, Select2008’s insights on candidates’ popularity and most divisive issues will be most relevant for the February 5 Super Tuesday.

On the Democratic side, John Edwards and Barack Obama are head-to-head and ahead of Hillary Clinton. Barack Obama has a commanding lead on Economic and International Affairs, while Hillary Clinton edges ahead on Energy and Environment and Education. John Edwards is ahead on Defense (including the war in Iraq) and Healthcare.

On the Republican side, Rudy Giuliani is slightly ahead of John McCain. Rudy Giuliani seems to be #2 on most issues and therefore comes out ahead of all other candidates overall. Rudy Giuliani also leads in Energy and Environment. John McCain is strong on Homeland Security and in a dead heat on Economy with Mitt Romney and Rudy Giuliani. Rudy Giualini and Mitt Romney are head to head on Government Reform (including tax cuts). Mike Huckabee leads on Education.

Popularity: 62% [?]

The three major Democratic candidates to the 2008 Presidential election – Hillary Clinton, John Edwards, and Barack Obama – have all recently released an economic stimulus package, as the softness of the U.S. economy comes into focus.

These plans include quite a few repurposed proposals, which are now being legitimized by the sudden worsening of the economy. Clinton and Edwards seize the opportunity to tout their “green” initiatives, as a way to boost the economy and convert blue collar jobs to “green collar” jobs.

There are three sets of differences between these plans: their respective size (from $25 billion to $75 billion without supplementals), their conduits (from tax cuts to direct hand outs) and their main beneficiaries among the working and the middle class, the retirees, the home owners hit by the subprime crisis, and the unemployed workers.

The charts below show that Clinton’s key measures focus on home owners impacted by the subprime crisis, as well as people hit by the rising cost of energy. On the other hand, Obama’s key measures are a large tax cut to the working and middle class and additional hand outs to retirees in need.

Popularity: 18% [?]