1800: Adams and Jefferson

The elections have changed dramatically since the 1800s. When Thomas Jefferson, pictured here, ran against incumbent, President John Adams, there were no primaries, no nominating conventions, and no entourage of reporters. Candidates were nominated by their elected representatives in Congress. The election marked the first peaceful transfer of power between parties via the electoral process.

1896: William Jennings Bryan and William McKinley

By 1896, national nominating conventions had become well established. William Jennings Bryan campaigned in person traveling through 26 states. Campaigning was now an accepted and necessary practice. William McKinley, pictured here on a political poster, ran a front-porch campaign from his home in Ohio. He managed to label the Democrats as the party of depression. The Republicans won in the industrial Midwest and Northeast and became firmly entrenched as the nation's majority party for the next several decades.

2008: Barack Obama

In stark contrast to the elections of 1800 and 1896, the 2008 campaign was covered by a myriad of networks, newspapers, and other media. Democrat Barack Obama, shown here, ran a smart campaign against Republican John McCain. Obama's message was one of unity, multi-culturalism, and change. After years of sending troops to the middle east, the United States was ready to replace the Republican President George W. Bush, who had become widely unpopular because of his stance on war and human rights issues. Obama was the perfect opposite of Bush. The people's verdict in 2008 was Obama 53 percent, to McCain at 46 percent of the vote. In 2008, Barack Obama became the first African American in history elected to the presidency, change was here.