From the game's introduction
It’s election time in the Cardboard Utopia, and every last sleazy, poe-faced, backstabbing politico wants a piece of the action! The country is beset by problems, foreign, domestic, economic, you name it there’s something wrong with it and people want to know what YOUR party is going to do about it! The public is roaring and ready for change; this election could go any way and everyone knows it. Grab your banners, stick to your portfolios, smear your enemies and try to keep all your mistresses secret. The top job’s on the line and all is fair in love, war and politics!