The cost of running for president.

• Position: GRAPH: ELECTION 2008 - Brief article

Winning the White House is a very costly undertaking these days. Candidates must pay large campaign staffs; buy ads across a growing range of media [see p. 14 in the magazine]; hold fund-raising events; travel across the nation to woo voters, and overseas to meet with world leaders, and much more.

Experts expect the 2008 presidential race to shatter campaign spending records. Barack Obama and John McCain may each end up raising $500 million by Erection Day in November.

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ANALYZE THE GRAPH

(1) About how many times more costly was the 2004 election than the 1984 election?

a More than two times

b More than three times

c More than four times

d More than five times

(2) How many of the elections on the graph cost candidates a combined total of mere than $300 million?

a Two

b Three

c Six

d Eight

(3) As of July, Obama and McCain alone spent a total of about $465 million, about the same as all of the candidates in which year?

a 2000

b 1996

c 1992

d 1988

(4) If you subtract the campaign costs of the third most costly election year from those of the second most costly, it leaves twice the campaign costs for which year's election?

a 1996

b 1992

c 1984

d 1976

(5) Hillary Clinton spent about $235 million on her unsuccessful campaign for the Democratic nomination this year. Her spending was about what percent of the total shown for 2008 on the graph?

a 15 percent

b 25 percent

c 35 percent

d 40 percent

ANSWER KEY

(1) [c] More than four...