Flipping, or rather scrolling, through a recent article on CNN.com caused me a slight moment of panic. Until now, I have been very happy to see that the presidential race between Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton has been so close and that each candidate's support systems are growing stronger each day. I am even glad to see John McCain show himself as a formidable opponent to whichever candidate earns the Democratic nomination. These types of presidential races to the White House are much more interesting and seem much more democratic than the usual "sure, I'll back this guy simply because he's a Democrat."
This election is full of historic moments, not only from the types of candidates that we see rising as front-runners, but also from the bipartisan stance that people seem to be taking. I know of many people, Democrat and Republican, who are backing candidates across party lines. Therefore, a person must admit that this election will go down in history as one of the most exciting and significant in recent memory.
However, this extremely close race between the two Democratic contenders may end up hurting their bids to the White House. The previously mentioned article stated that, in the past, when a party has been split so evenly down the middle, the person who eventually receives the nomination has always lost. Thus, my moment of panic ensued. Now, it's no secret that I would be happier than Halle Berry after she won her Oscar if Obama made it to the White House.
So obviously, my panic can come as no surprise. Either way, if the Democrats of America want a Democrat in office, the party needs to begin unifying their party members under one candidate. This extreme fracturing of the Democratic Party seems destined to only hurt their chances of taking the presidency in November.
Unless God intervenes with the miracle that Huckabee needs to secure his GOP nomination, John McCain will most likely take on the fight for the Republican Party. And despite some recent fracturing within the elephant party, many Republicans are showing unyielding support for their probable front-runner.
Therefore, if the Democrats want to maintain a strong support system after the nominations are announced, then they must find a way to unite all party members under their particular nominee. With a fractured party, the Democrats can never hope to win on Election Day, and the Republicans are using this tactic in order to secure four more years of Republican control in the executive branch.
However, the most important reason to unite both parties under their particular candidate is to ensure that this historic election remains as exciting and debate worthy as it has been so far. We never need to return to the "I don't care who he or she is just so long as they're a Republican/Democrat."
These elections are about choosing the best possible person for this extremely important and influential job, and without an election that puts all candidates at the top of their game, the electoral process, which makes our country great, is completely lost. We do not need to simply hand over the presidency because of simple disputes within a party, but we need to make sure that both candidates bring forth the best and brightest aspects of themselves so that when one of them finally makes it to the White House, they will appreciate the long, hard walk even more.
So even though I'll be rooting for Obama until the very end his campaign, I plan to stand behind whichever candidate the Democratic Party chooses. I hope that all Americans will stand just as strong behind their candidate, thus making this historical moment not only a great time to be alive, but also a great time to be an American.
Does this column get your vote? Let Sarah know at sarah.maschoff@asu.edu.
