The presidential election of 2012 was among the most important in American history, both for the policies that will persist due to its result, as well as the national political transformation it portends. The contest’s outcome was the product of complex and fast-moving societal changes–demographic, technological, and economic–surfacing in American society. This volume, consisting of essays by leading scholars of American politics and the American presidency, examines the 2012 presidential election in its many facets. Particularly prominent in these analyses are: the role of religious and cultural divisions in contemporary American politics; the status of the two main political parties, their core constituencies, and demographic forces; the rhetorical approaches of the two nominees; the strategies and tactics of the two campaigns; and the decisive impact of economic, domestic, and foreign policies.