primaries

"By the time the U.S. presidential election rolls around every four years, everyone knows who's in the running for office. But how are presidential candidates in the United States chosen? How do candidates get nominated, and what does a nomination mean? Can you become president without a nomination, and why or why not? Readers will learn about political parties, national conventions, special circumstances during nominations, and the history of presidential nominations"--Provided by publisher.

The Carter presidency was on life support. The Democrats, desperate to keep power and yearning to resurrect former glory, turned to Kennedy. And so, 1980 became a civil war. It was the last time an American president received a serious reelection challenge from inside his own party, the last contested convention, and the last all-out floor fight, where political combatants fought in real time to decide who would be the nominee. It was the last gasp of an outdated system, an insider's game that old Kennedy hands thought they had mastered, and the year that marked the unraveling of the Democratic Party as America had known it.

The story of the four-month campaign that changed American politics forever. In 1912 Theodore Roosevelt came out of retirement to challenge his close friend and handpicked successor, William Howard Taft, for the Republican Party nomination. Roosevelt was so confident he would win the nomination that he proposed presidential primaries in each state to let "the people rule." And Roosevelt prevailed in nine out of thirteen state primaries. But Republican party bosses proved too powerful and denied Roosevelt the nomination. A third party, the Bull Moose Party was Roosevelt's answer to this new situation. And in the end, Roosevelt's solution split the Republican party and Democrat Woodrow Wilson became president in 1912.

Explains the process by which Presidential and Vice-Presidential candidates are nominated and discusses the role of campaign financing, primaries, caucuses, and conventions.

Driven by the violent nightmare of his childhood, fueled by forces that few could understand, and burdened by secrets no one must know, Kilcannon is running for President - and entering the crucial battleground of California with seven days to go. But for Kilcannon, there are hurdles that his courage, charisma, and compassion may not overcome: the network correspondent he still loves; the reporter bent on their exposure; the rival who'll do anything to win; and the fanatic who believes he must murder Kilcannon to protect the right to life.