Ruling Elite Transitions in Australia and the United States

Abstract

In November 2007 Australian voters elected a new political leader, Kevin Rudd. His election was the culmination of a campaign focused almost entirely on the contrasting personalities and images of Rudd and John Howard. By projecting the image of a flexible technocrat-reformer representing a new generation of Australians, Rudd triumphed over Howard’s image as a stubborn defender of the established political-economic order and the generation it served. In November 2008 American voters also elected a new leader, Barack Obama, following a lengthy presidential campaign focused heavily on the personalities and images of Obama and his opponent John McCain. Although affected in its final weeks by a shattering financial crisis, the American contest posed a choice between a highly educated black man and a white military hero, between inspiration and toughness.