Campaigns shape the outcomes of elections by focusing on three key factors for voters: assigning credit or blame for the state of the nation, activating voters' latent partnership, and allowing voters to judge the characters of the candidates. These three factors are three of the most important elements in shaping a voter's decision at the ballot box. Campaigning in battleground states can also swing that state towards a particular candidate. Therefore, presidential campaigns matter because they can persuade voters to vote a certain way. Without them, the public could be less informed about who they are voting into office.
