Following the Rules? Candidate Strategy in Presidential Primaries

The competitiveness of the 2008 presidential primaries in both the Republican and Democratic parties has prompted a reconsideration of the role of delegate-selection rules in influencing the strategic behavior of presidential candidates. Using advertising and candidate state-visit data from the 2004 and 2008 presidential nominating campaigns, we reexamine the strategies presidential candidates use when competing for the nomination of their party. Copyright (c) 2009 by the Southwestern Social Science Association.