How did President Obama win the election?

Answer 1

In 2008, he won because the majority of Americans were frustrated by what had happened to the country under President Bush. That may sound like a partisan answer, but objective researchers (including political scientists) showed that even many Republicans felt that Mr. Bush had turned out to be a disappointment: he had turned a surplus into a massive deficit, promoted policies that caused an economic crisis, fought an unnecessary war (Iraq), and performed poorly in the crisis of Hurricane Katrina. The public believed that the Republican candidate, John McCain, while certainly a war hero, would simply continue President Bush's policies. Barack Obama was an inspirational speaker, and he was seen as a departure from Republican rule; his personal story (the first African-American nominee of any major party) inspired many groups of people, including youth and ethnic minorities, to vote in greater numbers than in past elections.

In 2012, despite a slow economic recovery due to global financial challenges, Mr. Obama was seen as a better choice than his Republican opponent Mitt Romney. Mr. Romney was perceived as a candidate whose policies would mainly help the rich. The Republican party's extreme turn to the right on social issues also alienated many moderates and women. Further, the Obama campaign was able to gain the support of Hispanic-Americans, Asian-Americans, and (again) young voters. The 2012 election was much closer than that of 2008, but Mr. Obama was able to persuade the majority of Americans that he was moving the country in the right direction and deserved four more years to continue improving the economy and getting more Americans back to work.