2008 Campaign Tracker
Following is a listing of the times the major party nominees for president and vice president visited each state from September 5, the day after the Republican presidential convention, to November 4. This information was compiled from the Washington Post and is based on publicly available information from media reports, campaigns, and other sources. Some events--particularly fundraisers--may not be included in the data, as they are often unannounced.Visits to states not included in the chart include
Sarah Palin's two visits to her home state of Alaska, Joe Biden's four
visits to his home state of Delaware, and the visits by each candidate corresponding to the debates in Mississippi, Missouri, Tennessee, and New York.Press Release Series: The Swing States of America
12/4/08 - 2008's Shrinking Battleground
10/29/08 - 99% of 2008 Presidential Campaign Visits in Only 17 States
10/22/08 - With two weeks to go, presidential candidates spoil six lucky states
10/17/08 - In the "Swing States of America," Candidates Ignore a Majority of States and Follow Voting Patterns of 2004 Presidential Election
10/9/08 - Candidates Focus Their Times and Resources on a Handful of States and Follow Voting Patterns of 2004 Presidential Election
2008 Presidential Ad Spending
| State | Obama | Biden | Democrat | McCain | Palin | Republican | All Visits* | ||
| Alabama | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| Alaska | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| Arizona | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 2 | ||
| Arkansas | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| California | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| Colorado | 5 | 3 | 8 | 5 | 4 | 9 | 17 | ||
| Connecticut | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| Delaware | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| District of Columbia | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | ||
| Florida | 12 | 5 | 17 | 8 | 5 | 13 | 30 | ||
| Georgia | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| Hawaii | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| Idaho | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| Illinois | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | ||
| Indiana | 4 | 2 | 6 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 10 | ||
| Iowa | 1 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 3 | 7 | 8 | ||
| Kansas | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| Kentucky | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| Louisiana | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| Maine | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | ||
| Maryland | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | ||
| Massachusetts | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| Michigan | 3 | 2 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 7 | 12 | ||
| Minnesota | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | ||
| Mississippi | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| Missouri | 3 | 5 | 8 | 4 | 4 | 8 | 16 | ||
| Montana | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| Nebraska | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| Nevada | 4 | 1 | 5 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 9 | ||
| New Hampshire | 3 | 3 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 9 | ||
| New Jersey | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| New Mexico | 2 | 1 | 3 | 5 | 1 | 6 | 9 | ||
| New York | 3 | 1 | 4 | 4 | 2 | 6 | 10 | ||
| North Carolina | 5 | 3 | 8 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 13 | ||
| North Dakota | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| Ohio | 6 | 9 | 15 | 9 | 11 | 20 | 35 | ||
| Oklahoma | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| Oregon | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| Pennsylvania | 4 | 5 | 9 | 11 | 9 | 20 | 29 | ||
| Rhode Island | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| South Carolina | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| South Dakota | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| Tennessee | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | ||
| Texas | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | ||
| Utah | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| Vermont | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| Virginia | 9 | 6 | 15 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 21 | ||
| Washington | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| West Virginia | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | ||
| Wisconsin | 2 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 4 | 9 | 11 | ||
| Wyoming | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| Total | 249 |
*Information in this chart is based on data from The Washington Post 2008 Campaign Tracker. Visits and fundraisers documented in alternative news sources may not be included. Any portion of a day spent in a state constitutes a visit to that state. For example, if a candidate spends one day in Alabama and has two rallies on that day, this is documented as a single visit to Alabama. Multiple events held in one state on the same day are considered a single visit. Consecutive days spent in a single state are considered multiple visits. For example, if a candidate holds a rally on Monday and holds a speech on Tuesday, both in Alabama, each day constitutes its own visit, and the candidate therefore has two visits to Alabama. For the purposes of our research non-traditional campaign events such as fundraisers, visits to candidates' home states, schedule debates, and work-related visits are excluded from the data.