The presidential election is capturing the public's attention much more now than it did at this point four and eight years ago. Nearly half of Americans (47%) say they are more interested in politics than they were four years ago, up from 38% who expressed that view in June 2000. Public attention to election news is greater now than at a comparable point in the last three campaigns. And this is translating into a more focused electorate – nearly six-in-ten voters (58%) say they are giving "quite a lot" of thought to the election, compared with 46% who said that four years ago at this time.