An era is drawing to a close. What began in January 1995 when Pluto entered Sagittarius, will change in January 2008, when Pluto leaves. 13 long years which have seen a religious transformation take place beyond our dreams, from Islamic terror to neo-conservative hegemony in the USA and prayer sessions between Bush and Blair. It is always the case that when Jupiter teams up with Pluto, which can be said to have happened with this long Pluto transit through Sagittarius, then wisdom is obscured by ideological fanaticism.

When someone is gripped by ideological fanaticism then it is often true that any means at hand is justifiable to reach a desired end result. Towers can fall, countries can be invaded. The end justifies the means. This is the time when the masses can be expected to die for the beliefs of some mad group or individual. With Pluto in Sagittarius the focus has been on alien religions and beliefs, and the result has been the polarization of peoples and nations. This process is likely to reach a crescendo as Jupiter transits Sagittarius to conjoin Pluto on December 11th 2007 at 28 degrees. This is the last mighty gasp of the doctrine of extremism, after which the pragmatic climate of Capricorn will defuse religious interpretations of world conflict, and find practical solutions no longer based on ideological belief.

From June to November 2008 Pluto will return to Sagittarius to complete unfinished business, and on September 2007, January 2008 (retrograde) and March 2008 Mars will oppose Pluto on the Gemini/Cancer cusp. This Mars opposition suggests that the Pluto transition from Sagittarius to Capricorn will be violent and very unstable indeed. Planets crossing cups are often reflected on Earth by forces crossing borders, and therefore it is likely that there will be a last gasp attempt to eliminate “the forces of evil” between September 2007 and November 2008. This could be further terror in the USA, or American or Israeli attacks on Iran, or simply the withdrawal of occupation forces from Iraq with the inevitable escalation of civil war as a result.

But whatever happens, the end of ideological extremism as the dominant factor in politics will arrive. As the final exit of Pluto from Sagittarius takes place in November 27th 2008 – the same month as the US election, the Republican ideologues who have been running American politics for many years will disappear into the history books. This means goodbye to the right-wingers behind Bush, like Dick Cheney, but almost certainly to the Republican party too, which augurs well for Democratic candidates. By the inauguration of the new president in January 2009, Pluto will be firmly in Capricorn and Jupiter will just have entered Aquarius, the latter indicating a euphoric period of people’s power in America. The United States has the Moon in Aquarius, which Jupiter will go on to conjoin a year after the inauguration.

A preliminary look at the election horoscope in November 2008 tells a mixed story.

Horoscope: US Election 2008: November 4th, 6.00 New York. AS 5.33 Scorpio

There seem to be several power blocks in this chart. The sun is, as always with US presidential elections, in Scorpio with Scorpio rising. Mars, significantly, is in Scorpio in exact square to Neptune. This is an echo of the US (Sibley) chart’s Mars square Neptune, and shows a very powerful masculine influence. Mars/Neptune relates very much to the US history of slavery, so here Mars in Scorpio could show black power… quite a nice indication for the new Democratic hope Barak Obama.

Horoscope: Barak Obama August 4th, 1961. 13.06. Honolulu, Hawaii. AS 17.30 Scorpio

Astrologer Frances McEvoy has suggested a birth time of 13.06 – it is an uncertain time but it gives a 17 degree Scorpio Ascendant, quite close to that election Mars. Amazingly Obama has his Mars within a degree of the US Mars, which should make him a natural channel for the American macho spirit and a perfect representative for blacks. (Although with a Kenyan father and white mother, he does not actually have the traditional African American heritage). George Herbert Walker Bush, who was president from 1988 – 1992, had a Sun/Uranus square activating the US Mars – probably an indication of the first Gulf War escapade – but Obama has a rather restrained Mars/Saturn trine, which would probably keep the brakes on American war fever.

Given Obama’s oratorical gifts, it is likely that he is born after noon, with the Moon in Gemini, and this Moon makes a perfect trine to his Jupiter in Aquarius. It is worth noting that the inauguration of US presidents takes place at noon on January 20th, putting the Sun at 0 degrees Aquarius. In 2009 Mercury retrograde will be exactly conjoining the Sun within 4 minutes of arc – and Jupiter will be at 3 degrees Aquarius – quite striking when one considers that Barak Obama’s Jupiter is at 0.53 Aquarius.

Obama’s opponents are going to have some difficulty puncturing his image, because his horoscope is strangely devoid of obvious behavioral problems. Nixon had his terrible Mercury/Mars opposition Pluto (secret tapes, bad language), Clinton his Mars/Neptune in Libra (Jennifer Flowers and Monica Lewinski). He does have Sun square Neptune and there maybe an element of self-inflation, and a Moon square Pluto (abortion, woman’s rights), but it seems like he will be wildly popular and hard-working.

Following Obama’s star up to the actual election, he does have some extraordinary progressions. For example, his Venus (at 1 degree Cancer at birth and therefore only 2 degrees from a conjunction with the US Venus) progresses to 27.03 degrees Leo – exactly opposite the US Moon at 27.10 Aquarius. This does seem to indicate that he is still figuring on the people’s radar at the time of the election. Furthermore, his progressed sun at the time of the election is at 27.59 Virgo, trine US Pluto (black power) and trine his progressed Jupiter. So if he were to become president, the progressed sun would travel from the trine to progressed Jupiter to the trine of radical Jupiter during the 4 year period of office. His progressed Mercury and Mars conjoin at 22 Libra at the election and trine US Mars.

It is of course early days to say, and Hillary Clinton (note 1) might get a bit upset if this scenario turned out. But she has plenty of flaws – not least a Mars/Pluto conjunction at 14 Leo square Venus at 16 Scorpio, and these can leave her very vulnerable to charges of power abuse and financial secrecy (remember the Whitewater scandal). She also has retrograde Mercury in Scorpio exactly square Saturn, and she could be destroyed by secrets that surface. But then, she has survived so far.

Looking at the election chart again, another strong influence is the Moon/Jupiter conjunction in Capricorn on the day. This shows a conservatively minded electorate who want careful and realistic solutions. They are going to vote for someone who promises to proceed cautiously, building up the nation’s institutions and economy. This fits well with Obama’s Mars/Saturn trine from Virgo to Capricorn, and indeed, the Moon goes on into Aquarius by the time the election closes… right on Obama’s Jupiter.

Another major influence on election day is the rare Saturn/Uranus opposition (within a minute of arc) at 18.58 Virgo/Pisces. This opposition only takes place once about every 45 years, and was last effective in the mid-sixties. This clearly show a strong polarization between the old and the new – which could both be between black and white, between old and young, or between male and female. It is fortunate that Jupiter in Capricorn trines and sextiles Saturn and Jupiter, otherwise one could expect the pitched battles that characterized the mid-sixties in America starting with the Watts riots in 1965 (note 2) and ultimately ravaging San Francisco and Cleveland in 1966; Detroit, Newark, and Baltimore in 1967; and Baltimore, New York, Washington, and Chicago in 1968. The last opposition had the sign positions reversed – Uranus in Virgo and Saturn in Pisces – but the message is a similar variation of order and chaos; those with neat existences, and those without privilege. Obviously universal health services would be a brilliant election platform.

The opposition this time fortunately does not have Pluto in the equation, but it does configurate with Venus in Sagittarius. This might indicate that there is a female contender in the election, and perhaps someone who is unique. It almost makes one think of Condoleezza Rice, who indeed has Venus in Sagittarius and a steely Sun/Mars conjunction in Scorpio. Of course, she isn’t running and has given no indication of doing so. Yet.

Other candidates on the Republican side are New York Mayor Rudy Guiliani and Sen. John McCain (Note 4). There is no doubt that McCain resonates with the US chart… he has his Moon on the US Pluto and his Venus on the US Mars. Indeed his Venus conjoins Neptune and opposes Saturn, which may just be why he spent 5 years in a Vietnamese prison camp – a victim of the US war in Vietnam. As a pilot – he has Mars in Leo square Uranus – he dropped bombs, and it is said that he has an extremely explosive temperament. His Moon opposition Pluto, exactly activating the US Pluto probably awakens too many uncomfortable memories for Americans. He will also be 72 years old at the time of the election… though there are indications that there will be a generation gap between the contestants.

Looking at the progressed horoscope for the US (Sibley) chart at the time of the election it is extraordinary for a number of reasons. In November 2008 there is a progressed full moon, with Moon at 2 Virgo and Sun at 4 Pisces. On the one hand the Sun trines progressed Saturn (exact in December 2007) and on the other it squares progressed Uranus (exact in 2011 suggesting some explosive developments for the US at this time). This full moon suggests the polarization of the nation and also perhaps a male/female polarity.

Added to this is the extraordinary opposition of progressed Venus to a Mars that has just turned retrograde. This too shows polarization – here between male and female. This may show a male/female President/Vice President combination. It certainly shows the nation will be profoundly split about gender issues. It is a fact that feisty Hillary Clinton came into the White House (as a spouse) just as Venus entered Aries, so she rather embodies this energy, that shows a woman fighter, just as Mars in Libra shows a male appeaser… both planets being in detriment, yet in reception. Still, a Obama/Clinton ticket would be rather an odd combination – too much history taking place at once. But then November 2008 is a historical time. Also, it would be difficult to imagine Hillary Clinton taking second place… though she has done it before. When Hillary Clinton compromises, it is for strategic reasons only.

Still the election horoscope shows that the sure way to win for Democrats in 2008 is just such a ticket, with a focus on healthcare initiatives and the endemic inequality that polarizes America.

Adrian Duncan 19th March 2007

■ Hillary Clinton is born October 26th 1947 in Chicago. There is an unconfirmed birth time of 20.00
■ The Watts riots took place on August 11th 1965.
■ Condoleezza Rice is born on November 14th 1954.
■ John McCain is born on 29th August 1936 at 9.00 in Panama.