There is no outsider in the race for the White House this year. One candidate is a sitting president, and the other a three-time presidential candidate and Washington veteran.
Yet both are proposing to change the way government works, and its role in the day-to-day lives of its constituents.
Experts say the two contenders, President Clinton and Republican nominee Bob Dole, aren't far apart on the political spectrum. Both candidates are pressing change and growth as hot issues.
Where they disagree is in just how that change should come about.
But with a healthy economy and a therefore relatively content electorate, some say the outcome of the presidential election has little to do with rhetoric exchanged on the campaign trail.
They say Clinton has had the race wrapped up for months.
"I don't think issues are likely to affect voters very much (in the time remaining until the election)," said Gregory Markus, a University political science professor. "It's been set for three months.
"The Clinton campaign was very effective in linking Bob Dole with prospective Medicare cuts and that rattled a lot of older voters," Markus said.
John Kingdon, another University political science professor, agreed that there isn't much race in this race.
"(The presidential election was) pretty much settled by the middle of last summer," Kingdon said.
Kingdon said the lack of heated competition is due in part to a changing electorate.
"Most elections are not prospective, they are retrospective," Kingdon said. "The electorate assesses the situation in the recent past and they say, 'Do I like what I see or not?'"
In this case, Kingdon said, people saw a nation at peace and growing economically. Clinton was lucky to inherit a country in an upswing, and there is little chance his luck won't hold, Kingdon said.
"(Dole/Kemp campaigners) certainly haven't made any dents in the Clinton lead," said communications studies Prof. Michael Traugott.
Clinton's significant lead in the polls has led congressional GOP candidates to stray from aligning themselves too closely with the Dole/Kemp ticket, said some analysts and Democrats.
"The Republicans are abandoning Bob Dole ...," said Michigan Democratic Party chair Mark Brewer.
Republican party officials, however, said candidates are not jumping ship, but supporters realize the tough race ahead.
"(Dole) says he's the underdog and knows he's behind in the polls," said Republican National Committee Chair Haley Barbour in a teleconference this week.
Experts say voters should expect few surprises from either candidate. Some said if Clinton wins, he, like many re-elected presidents, may search for an issue or project to leave a favorable impression on historians.
"Most presidents in their second term are looking to make a mark so they'll be remembered well in history," Kingdon said.
Clinton may "finally take on entitlements" and tackle recent speculations about the future of welfare, Medicare and Medicaid, Kingdon said.
"I doubt if he'll go back to a full-scale plan to reorganizing one-seventh of the budget," he said, referring to Clinton's defeated health care initiative.
Traugott speculated the president may choose the crowd favorite - campaign finance reform - as his pet project, but won't take any drastic stances as he looks for his place in the history books.
"He's not going to chance a lot of his positions radically," Traugott said.
If the unexpected happens and Dole wins the election, Dole's first order of business won't be a surprise, Traugott said.
"(Dole would) start out right a way with his proposed tax cut," he said.
Many experts said they are not excited about the possibility of the cut.
Dole's proposed 15-percent across-the-board tax cut "implies deep cuts in domestic programs," no matter what the campaign stipulations are, Traugott said.
"He's going to start to put together a program to reduce spending in social programs," he said.