Obama-Clinton Fuel Record Primary Turnout, But Will Enthusiasm Last?

April 1, 2008— -- Democratic voters have smashed primary turnout records in more than 20 states, and Republicans have set new marks in nine states. Yet campaign experts do not expect voter enthusiasm to keep up that pace through the November election.

In fact, most people who study elections do not believe this fall's showdown between Republicans and Democrats will even equal the turnout of four years ago, when 55.3 percent of eligible voters went to the polls.

Nevertheless, the tidal wave of voter participation in this year's primaries — and the strong participation of certain groups — could reshape national politics for years to come.

One person who believes this year's primaries are reshaping politics is James Thurber of the Center for Congressional and Presidential Studies.

"You have to go back to 1960 when John F. Kennedy ran" to see a comparable political shift, Thurber told ABC News.

Kennedy's appeal to young voters, as well as a tight race against Republican Richard Nixon, produced a modern record for voter turnout, with 62.7 percent of eligible voters going to the polls.

"Kennedy was an example of a generational shift" in peoples' attitudes toward politics, with his emphasis on "ask what you can do for your country," Thurber said. "He produced a whole new generation [of voters] and they are still around in the Democratic Party."

Thurber contends that, like JFK, Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., has had success in mobilizing young people ages 18 to 30. And Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., is likewise energizing women and Latinos to get out and vote.

Thurber says that it's not just the candidates who are energizing voters. The enthusiasm for this year's elections is being fueled by the issues of the day.

"When you have a war that is unpopular and you have an economy that is going down, it really turns people on," Thurber said.

The record-shattering turnouts in the 2008 primaries mark a sharp upturn from previous elections.

Then-President Bill Clinton's landslide over Sen. Bob Dole, R-Kan., in 1996 happened with only 49.1 percent of eligible voters participating.

Four years later, then-Gov. George Bush versus Vice President Al Gore produced a 51.3 percent turnout rate. In 2004, Sen. John Kerry's, D-Mass., challenge of Bush raised the turnout rate to 55.3 percent, the highest level since 1964, when 61.9 percent of Americans voted.