McCain

Hilary Clinton says that the release of information by FBI director James Comey just before the election was instrumental in causing her loss and there is some validity to that claim. This also happened in 2008 to John McCain who had been running 6 points behind Obama though out most of the campaign until late August when he chose Sara Palin for his vice president. She came on the scene with a flair that fired up the base and suddenly McCain pulled ahead of Obama. With an 8 point swing McCain found himself with a two point lead and the momentum. Then on September 15th it was announced that Lehman Brothers would file bankruptcy and panic hit the markets and McCain’s run was over. Pew Research Center data analyzing the tone and focus of media coverage through the final stretch of that election showed how that coverage shifted dramatically in mid-September 2008 to focus on the financial crisis and the media narrative grew increasingly critical of Republican candidate John McCain. During this same period, our public opinion survey data indicate that what had essentially been a deadlocked contest between McCain and Obama before the Lehman meltdown turned into a solid lead for Obama in the weeks that followed.