So the big question now is, Will Mitt Romney be able to pose a realistic threat to Obama's re-election? Will Mitt Romney be able to pose a stiff challenge to one of the most charismatic leaders of the modern era? .. Well, if you all you folks out there still believe that Barack Obama's re-election is just a formality, as was the notion a few months back, you might well be up for a surprise. According to recent polls, Mitt Romney is giving Barack Obama more than a fight, and it sure does look like a tight finish is in the offing. Looking back in history, the standard to which all close elections are judged is the 2000 race between Al-Gore and Bush. In that election, Gore won 50,999,897 votes (48.38 percent) to Bush’s 50,456,002 votes (47.87 percent). Bush won thanks to a 271 to 267 electoral vote margin over Gore.
The Presidential Race 4 years later, between Bush and John Kerry was keenly contested too. And it’s entirely possible that the Obama-Romney race this fall will equal or even eclipse the closeness of the 2004 contest between Bush and Massachusetts Sen. John Kerry. For the record, Bush took 62,040,610 votes (50.73 percent) to Kerry’s 59,028,439 (48.27 percent) in that election and were it not for Bush’s 118,000-vote margin in Ohio, Kerry would have been elected president.
When all of the votes are counted on Nov. 6, the 2012 election might look a lot more like 2004 or even 2000 than it does 2008. And with such a small margin expected, little things can make a very big difference.
In a blowout presidential election, a few large issues dominate. In a tight election, a range of smaller concerns, important to strategic constituencies in battleground states, can end up being crucial. A tight election can sometimes turn out to be an aggregate result of many crucial and swing states.
President Obama may have hoped for a decisive reelection victory, styled on Ronald Reagan’s in 1984. At best, he will return to the White House in the manner of George W. Bush in 2004 — after a scrambling fight across the Electoral College map. For Mitt Romney, its an opportunity of a lifetime. As of now, he seems to be the right person, at the right time, at the right place.
They say that 5 Months is a long long time in Politics. I'm sure we are yet to see many twists and turns in this historic election. All I would say is that It would be fun to cover these elections with all of you!
And as Ravi Shastri would say, I hope this one goes Down to the Wire!
Mohit Dayal
