In the last 100 years, there have only been three times that one party controlled the White House for more than 8 years, and that has been due to extremely popular and charismatic presidents. Reagan and Bush had it for the Republicans for 12 years, largely due to Reagan’s extreme popularity. Franklin Roosevelt and Truman held it for an unprecedented 20 years, probably because the country was afraid to change presidents with World War II looming, as well as FDR’s charisma. The Republicans also had it for 12 years with Harding, Coolidge, and Hoover, due to Coolidge’s popularity. In fact, this 8-year “rule” has only been broke five times in American history.
Although it’s possible this year, it seems unlikely that the Democrats will extend their 8-year reign. History shows that it takes someone with a good deal more charisma than Obama to make history like that.