Unfortunately, much current journalism perceives elections as sporting contests.
In surveys, many Republicans cited his perceived electability in the general election as a reason for supporting him, but there was little groundswell of support for him personally.
It remains to be seen if the Afghan people will perceive the election as fair.
They are incensed about what they perceive as election irregularities amounting to racial disenfranchisement in Florida.
However, it should be noted that this focus is somewhat of a limitation as European elections are typically perceived as secondary elections in most EU member states, subordinate to the national electoral contest.
"Are we going to tie everybody's hands so much that instead of there being what is perceived to be election by special interests," she asked, "will we have election of only wealthy individuals?" The pressure on Mr. Meeks was also considerable.
Many within the Conservative party had perceived the 2010 election campaign as a shambles.
Reactions to an election perceived to be stolen could be aggressive in some cities controlled by the opposition.
A victory by President Bush in this election, perceived as legitimate, will change that perception irrevocably and be seen a declaration of war by the American people themselves.
The decision to ban some 500 candidates deemed to have links (in the past) to Saddam Hussein's Baath party was almost certain to cause Sunni boycotts, and yet another election perceived as illegitimate.
