Country road take them home, be it US or India

AHMEDABAD: The roadshows of itsPresidential candidates, that go back to the 19th century, have heavilyinfluenced the way Indian politicians reach out to the votertoday.Though the tone was set by Advani 14 years ago when he went onthe Somnath-Ayodhya Yatra, catapulting the BJP to the political centrestage andthen to power, it is still an alien concept that politicians in India areadopting at a fast pace to their advantage.US presidential electionwatchers say that although the polling process in the world�fs two greatdemocracies differ, election campaign strategies are quite similar, with Indianparties getting more westernised in their approach.In the 19thcentury, the American presidential election was transformed from the concerns ofa limited elite into a massive expression of popular will. From torchlightparades to campaign rallies, mass participation becamefashionable.Richard Nixon, the US president from 1969 to 1974, wasthe first presidential candidate to campaign in all 50 states in the run-up tothe elections. The trend has continued since then. In the run-up to the 1988elections, after getting his nomination at Republican Party conventions, GeorgeBush and his rival Democrat Michael Dukakis paid a visit to 30 and 32 statesrespectively. Both spent about two days in each of the states.Backhome, Advani is criss-crossing the nation on his 33-day yatra spanning 16 statesand UTs, covering 121 constituencies and 7,872 km, making elections and theprocess more of a celebration.Like US politicians, he has stopped atscheduled points to address public rallies and also at the unscheduled oneswhere he pops out of his Swaraj Mazda rath to address a crowd of curiousonlookers."This president (Bush) believes it�fs important toget outside of Washington DC, and visit the American people, and hear theirconcerns and talk to them about what we are doing to address those concerns," hesays White House spokesman Scott McClellan. And, though America has apresidential system while India has a parliamentary one, it is all aboutreaching out to voters, about eyeballs, and mass appeal.In the US,as in India, elections have shifted from party-centred campaigns to a focus oncandidates. The US elections have had the Republicans and Democrats put uppresidential candidates and their respective running mates along with a“shadow cabinet�. The American voter knows beforehand who would becalling the shots.In India, as the elections approach, they are alltrying to reach out -- be it Advani or Sonia or the younger generation, Rahuland Priyanka. And, what could be better than hitting the road.