Will the Worst Presidential Candidate Lose?

Today’s presidential nominees are not comparable to tennis star Venus Williams or golf’s Tiger Woods. Rather than an outcome where the best player wins, this election is shaping up where the worst candidate will lose. Sen. Barack Obama’s (D-Ill.) inexperience and overall image is only slightly countered by his adroit campaign skills; whereas Sen. John McCain’s (R-Ariz.) clumsy campaign efforts are only somewhat improved by his experience and character. Frankly, this race is shaping up to be not about who is the best individual to lead our country, but rather a test to see who will make the fewest mistakes.

If campaign management were the major and final determinant of this presidential race, McCain wouldn’t even make it on the field. He would be blown away, as evidenced even this early in the cycle (yes, America, this is early …) with Obama’s fundraising and mobilization prowess. McCain’s recent staff shake-up shows voters that even he recognizes the danger his campaign strategies pose in winning this election. Initially, McCain’s disjunctive arrangement of 11 regional managers proved to create an incoherent, malfunctioning strategy. I believe he’ll have trouble even with able-bodied Steve Schmidt now at the helm.

However, simply because McCain’s campaign tactics are in a losing battle doesn’t mean the election is a foregone conclusion for the Republican Party. Sen. Obama’s issue stances and inexperience create a significant problem despite his advanced campaign tactics. Let’s think back to 2000, when President Bush commanded a much better campaign than his opponent, former Vice President Al Gore. Despite his superior plan and execution, Bush still lost the popular vote.

Unfortunately for America, neither party has selected a superstar candidate. Instead, the Democrats have chosen a candidate with little experience and unproven policies; and Republicans selected a nominee with little charisma and failing campaign abilities. Rather than choosing the best leader for our country, voters may see this race as a contest to select the lesser of the two evils — voting against a candidate instead of for the other simply allows the worst candidate to lose.