politics — Election Day Live-Blog

The American election is just around the corner - only a little more than 24 hours away. As we approach the event itself, it is worth acquainting ourselves with the facts, issues, candidates and platforms from the perspective of as many quality resources as possible - note what I just said there: quality. Not all resources are equal - some are biased to the point of distortion of the truth, some are so self-possessed by their creators' personal, ideological, or economic aims that they select only those parts of the truth that advantage their preferred outcome, and of course some are intellectual junk food, poorly researched, poorly written, poorly cited, or a combination of these. This is part of the problem with our condition today - we're flooded with information and infotainment and asked to consume and evaluate it in a limited time, and further, when most people are not experts in politics, economics, or sociology.

Enter this post - put simply, I have collected a selection of resources to help - ideologically diverse and competent reporting and analysis, on the one hand, formal platforms of parties and candidates on the other, and finally key government and NGO sources of information. These sources, taken together, should help anyone interested in researching the specifics of the upcoming contest, not to mention anyone interested in following the polls and counts as the elections are held and returns come in.

And FYI, these are the principle resources I'll be using on Election Day myself - so consider them as having my eyebrow-waggle of approval.

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Platforms, Parties, and Candidates

The Clinton/Kaine Campaign

The Democratic National Committee

The Republican National Committee

The Trump/Pence Campaign

Government

Federal Election Commission

USA.gov / Voting and Elections

USAID ElectionGuide / United States of America

Non-Governmental and Watchdog Organizations