Edgar Thornton, Director of a college department, Iowa city (Republican)

This campaign is dirty, but what's more disappointing is the negative turn it has taken.

The candidates emphasized negative issues and failed to promote the positive sides or focus on real issues. If the Democrats are indeed as far ahead as they think they are – they should not be criticizing their opponents.

Secondly, I’ve never seen such a despicable vice-presidential campaign. What the media and the Democrats have done to Sarah Palin is absolutely outrageous.

To hear or see something negative about her every night is just out of the box. If Palin was a man, they would’ve never done that.

I think it was an orchestrated campaign because she’s a woman

Tim Bottaro, attorney, Sioux city Iowa (Democrat)

When Republicans know they’re going to lose, they resort to pretty much anything.

They’re sensing that they’re going to lose more seats in Congress and that’s worrying them. Iowa is a pretty clean state, Republicans here have been complaining about vote fraud and I’ve read a few reports but I haven’t seen any such thing.

All the stuff about Obama’s association with William Ayers was ridiculous and when John McCain said (during one of the presidential debates) that he stood by every word his campaign said - then I say McCain’s a liar because Obama didn’t pal around with former radicals.

Had McCain campaigned the way he did in 2000, he would have impressed many independent voters, but he chose to adopt Karl Rove and George W.Bush’s attacking policies and people are simply sick of it.

Obama’s aware of this and he tried to run a pretty clean campaign.

Jim Wilkinson, business owner, Mercedes TX (Republican)

This campaign is like every other campaign – mud slinging happens every 4 years.

One thing that really upset me is that Obama hasn’t answered any questions regarding his birth certificate, his association with people – these are answers we want and he’s not giving them.

As for ACORN, it seems the organization (a pro-Obama group that claims to be "unbiased") is intent on corrupting our upcoming election. ACORN has been targeting (registering primarily) minorities to help Obama (blacks vote 95% Obama). ACORN officials have been headlining pro-Obama rallies and the organization has donated heavily to Obama's campaign. (Wasn't Obama the lawyer representing ACORN?)

Now we hear of lawsuits in several states filed against ACORN. Among those resigtered by ACORN were Bugs Bunny and Mickey Mouse. With early voting started in 16 states, it's a matter of common reasoning that corruption and voting fraud abounds.

Linda Sharp, parenting writer, Austin TX (Independent)

Since our very first election, back when powdered wigs and men's hosiery still ruled the day, politics has been a dirty game.

And the closer we get to the day of reckoning, the dirtier the game becomes.

Muckraking, mudslinging, and BS abound. The electorate may not like it, but sadly, we're used to it. We all just try to duck so as not to get hit by the worst of it.

This election cycle has seen one man sink so low, even the pigs have trouble finding him in the mire, and one man who has refused to visit the gutter.

Barack Obama has largely kept his campaign from getting personal, and God knows, there is personal aplenty where John McCain's background is concerned. Rather, Barack has stayed the course with the issues, you know, those things that actually affect our lives.

The economy, the war, the mortgage meltdown? Heck, it was only today when the campaign finally suggested in an ad that Palin is a pretty poor pick to sit one 72-year-old man's heartbeat away from the Oval Office. John McCain, on the other filthy hand, has eschewed issues in favor of character assassination.

If attacks were bullets, Obama would look like Swiss cheese at this point. Robocalls filled with vitriol, rallies where hatespeech from the rabble is not countered, mailers filled with distortions or comments taken out of context, flat out lies. It's all been used, but it's also all backfired.

The sheep who attend his rallies may eat it up, but then they are too lazy and stupid to do any research to begin with. Ask them - the majority still believe Obama's a Muslim because an email told them so. McCain's Day of Reckoning is almost here.

And when November 5th dawns with Barack Obama as our next President, John will be left all alone asking, "Anyone see the SOAP?" Yes, John, bend over for it.

Ernesto Haibi, U.S. Army medic, Copperas Cove TX (Independent)

When it comes to elections "dirty" is a matter of perspective. Stating facts is not dirt, slander is dirt, pseudo-connections are dirt. Fact is Palin is a member of a party that advocates the secession of Alaska.

Her husband is quoted as saying that he is an Alaskan not an American and he has no need for the federal government.

Obama had dealings with a known hippie-terrorist 25 years ago and it's been proven that they have no more dealings.

When we talk about dirt in political races we have to look at the fact that ALL races have been dirty.

We can wax nostalgic about back in the day when politicians were honorable but we forget about L.B. Johnson's nuclear countdown commercial.

Even as far back as the second president, John Adams we can find cheap shots and "dirt." He referred to Thomas Jefferson as a deist and an atheist and asked America if they wanted that in the Presidency...they did apparently.

A politicians job is to do whatever it takes to keep his job. As long as attacks are based on policy, decisions, and past or future votes, nothing is dirty.

Julissa Reynoso, attorney, New York (Democrat)

This has not been a particularly dirty campaign. And even  if it had been, it would not have necesseraly mattered.

The 2008 presidential elections started in 2006 and what a ride it has been.  Who would have imagined in 2006 that Barack Obama would be the favorite heading into the final stretch. 

In 2006 it was all about Giuliani and Hillary. 

But life happens and here we have it. 

How did we get here? What has primarily influenced the results? Issues, not dirty politics. 

American voters are, more than in any other election in recent memory, deeply aware of their place in the world and of the day to day, material problems they face and the role of government in addressing them. 

The path has been very different than other election years where dirty politics dominated the discourse and efforts to mobilize.  T

he process was a tremendoulsy competitive one within each party - especially amongst Democrats. 

And over the last five or so months during the general election, both candidates have had their moment on top.  However, at the end the economy mattered most and here we are. 

And the instances when dirty politics surfaced their impact has not outweighed the impact of real problems.