I recently wrote a paper on the gamification of politics, read the full paper at JoshuaIAltman.com
Politics is a game and like all games there are winners and there are losers in every campaign and political fight. Although the existence of the victor and the defeated has been a part of politics since since the earliest contest, the rise of games, and a larger culture surrounding games has lead to the gamification of politics. The language of politics, words like “veepstakes” and online primaries allow anybody to participate in the game and play politics.