12 Democrats and 14 Republicans Enter the 2008 Presidential Race

Historically, the number of announcements for Presidential candidacy has never come so early. Possibly due to frustrations about the war in Iraq, so many potential candidates have already begun their campaigns.

A recent poll taken by CNN shows the lowest approval rating for a President beginning his last year in office. With a State of the Union address set for tomorrow evening (the 23^rd of January) at 9:00 p.m., President Bush has a 34% approval/63% disapproval rating.

Experts have said that this all-time low approval rating could account for early announcements in the upcoming race. Many people have opinions of the war and strategies for improving the country. The fact that both ballots are so crowded (12 Democratic candidates and 14 Republican candidates) also attributes to the announcements coming so early.

One of the results of this fact is that much more money will have to be raised and spent by these candidates to keep their campaigns going strong for the year of time between now and the primaries.

In another CNN poll, the top candidates for the Republican and Democratic parties are Rudy Giuliani and Hillary Clinton, correspondingly. On the Republican ballot, Giuliani is at 32%, but John McCain is close behind with 26%. The Democratic ticket shows Hillary at 34% with her closest competition, Barack O'Bama, at 18%. Rounding out the rest of the top candidates for the party are John Edwards at 15% and Al Gore at 10%.

Because of the large number of names on the ballot, the potentials will be forced to take strong stands on the issues early in the race. This will allow the media and opponents to pick up on the slightest of matters and use them negatively.

Looking back upon the past few elections, it is apparent that in-fighting will most likely occur. Opinions on this matter differ greatly. Some people don't want to hear bashing and want to stick to the concerns. Others want to know what the opposing candidate has done to weaken his or her credibility.

Possibly the most influential tool in the 2008 Presidential Election, the internet has already taken quite a role. Several candidates have begun to employ the use of the internet in their campaigns.

Of course, this raises a stirring of mixed feelings. Cyber campaigning gives the candidates more control over their environment and the message they want to send, but has been questioned for its lack of confrontation.

Many feel the internet will help both candidates and voters, as many young voters have cited the internet as their major source of political news and information. In any case, the public will be seeing much more of the candidates themselves as human beings, and that is always a good thing.