Elections 2004

Abilene Christian University
Government Documents

Biographies, platforms, parties | News | Campaign finance | Voter demographics | Opinion polls | Voting and registration | Games and quizzes | Election results

CANDIDATES 

Biographies, platforms, parties 

Democracy Network
http://www.dnet.org/

Position statements from major candidates on over 40 issues. Convenient chart allows candidate comparison at a glance. Can read actual statements from candidates on individual issues. Also links to detailed issues descriptions and opposing viewpoints. Covers nation, state, and local elections.

On the Issues
http://www.issues2000.org/

Top site focusing on candidates' issue positions. Gives background on issues along with excerpted quotes from candidates revealing their position. Can compare all candidates on a single issue, or all issues for a given candidate. Grid classifies opinions as liberal, conservative, progressive, or libertarian.

 

Political Parties (U. Of Michigan)
http://www.lib.umich.edu/govdocs/elec2004.html#2004parties

Extensive links to parties, conventions, and national agendas.

 

Politics1
http://www.politics1.com/

Candidate bios, analysis, list of supporters, links to supportive and nonsupportive web sites. "Issues" links to PACs by political orientation. Modest links to political party sites. Fairly commercial site but valuable for its compilation of media hype and opposing comments.

Project Vote Smart
http://www.vote-smart.org/

Non-partisan organization dedicated to compiling factual information on political candidates and elected officials to create an informed citizenry. Site includes biographical information, voting records, campaign issue positions, performance evaluations by special interests, campaign contributions, backgrounds, previous experience, and contact information. Standardized questionnaire results help compare candidates and identify stance on issues. Extensive links to other resources. Excellent, well-respected site.

 

Project Vote Smart Public Statements Search
http://www.vote-smart.org/official_five_categories.php?dist=speech.php

Searchable database of news items, speeches, issue papers, and interview transcripts of candidates’ public remarks. Can search by candidate or by topic. Useful for identifying issues, public image, and consistency of expressed opinions.

Reporter’s Source Book
http://www.vote-smart.org/rsb.html

Issue briefs on major political concerns. Each brief consists of an overview, pro and con arguments, and the public’s perspective. Invaluable for identifying major issues and for citations to public opinion polls. Lists advocacy groups on opposing sides of issues, many of which rate elected officials.

 

Texas Voter's Guide
http://www.lwvtexas.org/PDF Files/VI_VGEngl.11.04.pdf

Succinct overview of candidates in state races (excludes Presidential). Lists conditate's responses to specific questions for comparison purposes. Sponsored by the Leage of Women Voters, this is the best concise guide to lear about the candidates.

News 

AllPolitics (CNN)
http://cnn.com/ALLPOLITICS/

Daily news coverage of Election 2004. America Votes 2004 features today’s news plus small news archives, videos of political ads, brief biographies (major candidates only), CNN/Time opinion polls, political analyses, quarterly FEC campaign finance reports (brief reports, major candidates only).

Annenberg Political Fact Check
http://www.factcheck.org

Nonpartisan,"consumer advocate" for voters designed to reduce the confusion over contraticting political rhetoric by monitoring the factual accuracy of what candidates say. Well-documented articles give voters the real story. Contains latest releases and an archive back to 2003.

 

2004 Vote (C-SPAN)

Videos of speeches and interviews, campaign events, and campaign advertising; videos on political analysis; links to political parties and candidate sites.

Lexis-Nexis Campaign 2004 News
http://www.lexisnexis.com/campaign2004/

Search hundreds of national and local papers with these predefined searches from Lexis. Covers Bush and Kerry only. Includes speeches, news stories, debate transcripts, polls, and articles catagorized by issue.

Campaign finance 

Center for Responsive Politics
http://www.opensecrets.org/home/index.asp

Campaign finance data on individual candidates. Charts and number totals depict funds by source (individual/PAC/self/federal), geography, sector, and industry. Totals given by state, city, and zip code. Donor look-up allows searching by specific variables.

Political Moneyline
http://www.tray.com/fecinfo/

"A place to discover who gave what to which Federal candidates when." Search by candidate, contributor, PAC, individual, state, or zipcode. Similar to Center for Responsive Politics but with more detail.

 

Political Advocacy Groups
http://www.csuchico.edu/~kcfount/index.html

Directory of PACs by name and subject. Entries include web page, email address, regular mail address, and description. Check marks indicate groups that rate political candidates.

VOTERS 

Demographics and Voting Behavior 

Census Home Page
http://www.census.gov

Primary source for demographics by nation, state, county, place, or zip code. American Factfinder provides most detailed list of demographics. Population Estimates contain updated figures for population, age, sex, and race data. Subjects Index is helpful guide for other Census figures.

 

Census Voting and Registration Data
http://www.census.gov/population/www/socdemo/voting.html

Number of voters, registered voters, and voter turnout by demographic data (age, race, sex, occupation, etc.) and by geographic region (nation, region, state, urban/rural). Includes reasons why people did not vote. Data span presidential elections f rom 1964-present.

Dave Leip’s Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections
http://uselectionatlas.org

Maps and charts of presidential election statistics for 1789-2000. Gives general votes, electoral votes, voter turnout, candidates, and parties. State and county level data given for 1960-1996. Excellent way to track voting trends over time and to forecast results for a given area.

 

270 to Win
http://www.270towin.com/

Interactive electoral map. Create different scenarios and see how it affects the overall electoral vote.

Opinion Polls 

Gallup Organization
http://www.gallup.com

Summaries of most Gallup polls. News Highlights on home page often showcase Campaign 2004 or debates. Can search by topic. Gallup Poll groups results in social issue categories. Election 2004 gives poll snapshots, links to opinions on issues, candidate images, election analysis, polling blogs. Showdown State Polling forecasts electoral votes based on state polls. State of the Nation provides current president's approval rating, public satisfication, and public confidence in the economy.

 

National Election Studies Guide to Public Opinion and Electoral Behavior
http://www.umich.edu/~nes/nesguide/nesguide.htm

Tables, graphs, and poll results illustrating public opinion and voter demographics: social and religious characteristics of voters, public involvement, partisanship, opinion on public policy issues, etc. Results available at national level only. Data covers approximately 1948-2002.

Polling Report
http://www.pollingreport.com

Summaries of major opinion polls often quoted in the news. Good, comprehensive site.

 

Roper Center for Public Opinion Research (Lexis-Nexis, ACU Subscription)
http://web.lexis-nexis.com/universe

Click "Reference", "Polls & Surveys". Covers politics and government, public institutions, international relations, business, social affairs and consumer behavior and preferences. The file includes sources in opinion polling such as Gallup, Harris, Roper; ABC, CBS, CNN and NBC; Los Angeles Times, New York Times, USA Today, and Wall Street Journal.

Washington Post Data Directory
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/politics/polls/datadir.htm

Excellent links to public opinion sites conducted by nonpartisan organizations.

 

The Vanishing Voter
http://www.vanishingvoter.org/

Studies and regular polls measuring the public’s involvement in campaign and campaign issues. Surveys measure public’s knowledge of issues and impressions of debates. Some age breakdowns in results. Weekly polls follow voters’ interest in the campaign. Good site for tracking how well campaigns are reaching the public.

Voting and Registration 

Texas Secretary of State Elections Division
http://www.sos.state.tx.us/elections/index.shtml

Important dates, voting procedures, early voting information, and lists of county election officials.

 

Voter Information
http://www.sos.state.tx.us/elections/voter/index.shtml

Registration procedures, where to vote, ballot issues, frequently asked questions, etc. See especially the excellent guide to Texas Voting .

Register to Vote

For Texas (Registration deadline Oct. 4 for November 2004 Elections)
National Voter Registration Form
Student voters

Games and Quizzes 

Candidate Selectors
Take a quiz to match your views with the closest candidate or political party.

Issues2000 quiz -- 20 questions match on president, political celebrities, philosophy, or party

PBS Frontline - Quiz over issues and personal qualities of candidates

SelectSmart - based on candidates' actions, public statements, public votes, and interest group ratings

President Match - selects between Bush and Kerry only

 

President Forever
http://www.80soft.com/pforever/info/index.htm

Computer game that lets you experience the joys and frustrations of electioneering. Pick a candidate, design your ads and campaign strategies, and see the results. Can play 2004 election or relive a historic campaign of the past. Free demo version.

Election Results 

ABC News: Vote 2004 Real Time
http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/Vote2004/

Real time votes for presidential, state, house, senate, and referendum issues. See the nation at a glance, or click individual state for state results.

 

Secretary of State Election Returns
Texas or Other states

Source for election results that all other sites use. Results show up here first. Presidential, House, Senate, and other offices reported by state, by county, and by county comparison. Updated continually until official counts completed.

Washington Post: Elections 2004
http://www.washingtonpost.com/?LOAD_PAGE&reload=true

Features "at a glance" coverage with more detail by state.

Contents updated: Nov. 2, 2004