All office seekers, however, are ambitious. Running for office—even a
low-level one—is extremely demanding. Only people with a strong commitment
to winning will put up with the intense schedule of campaigning. At higher
levels, candidates face even more challenges.
Example: Presidential candidates
often campaign for eighteen hours a day. But the last few days of a
presidential campaign are particularly grueling. Candidates give up
sleep to campaign nonstop for the last few days. At the end of the 2000
campaign, Democrat Al Gore campaigned for forty-eight hours straight,
attending rallies at all hours of the day. His opponent, Republican
George W. Bush, followed a similarly grueling schedule.
Presidential Candidates
The longest, most difficult, most expensive, and most visible campaigns
are those for president. The process begins when a candidate chooses to run.
Then he or she must win the party nomination, endure the primaries, attend the
national convention, and, ultimately, campaign in the general
election.
Choosing to Run
Candidates usually spend the two years before the first primary
raising money, cultivating support from important party activists, and
getting their name known by the public. Many people spend a number of months
preparing to run for office only to eventually decide not to run because
they cannot generate enough support or they find the process too
demanding.
Ad-free experience
Study Guides for 1,000+ titles
Full Text content for 250+ titles
No Fear Translations of Shakespeare’s plays (along with audio!) and other classic works
Flashcards
Mastery Quizzes
Infographics
Graphic Novels
AP® Practice & Lessons
Note-taking
Bookmarking
Dashboard
