FACTBOX: Key dates in 2008 presidential campaign

Jan 3 (Reuters) - Here are some dates that will chart the course to the White House, ending with the election on November 4, 2008:

January 3: Iowa holds caucuses where voters go to meetings in their neighborhoods and pledge support for candidates. In the Democratic contest, a candidate must receive at least 15 percent support from voters to place.

January 4: U.S. Department of Labor issues the December 2007 employment report. This final report on the jobs picture for 2007 could give further indications of where the U.S. economy is headed amid growing voter concern it is veering toward recession.

January 5: Republican and Democratic candidates hold separate debates in Manchester, New Hampshire, trying to make a final impression on voters three days before they go to the polls for the state's primary.

January 8: New Hampshire holds its Democratic and Republican primary elections. Independent voters play an especially important role because they can vote for either a Republican or a Democrat.

January 19: Republicans vote in the primary in South Carolina, a state where Arizona Republican Sen. John McCain is looking to avenge his loss in 2000 to the current president, George W. Bush.

January 21: Democratic candidates debate in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, an event sponsored by the Congressional Black Caucus and CNN, just five days before voters go to the polls.

January 26: South Carolina Democrats vote in their primary.

January 29: Florida holds its primary contests. Republican Rudy Giuliani, a former New York mayor, has staked much of his campaign on trying to win the backing of Florida's voters.

February 5: 22 states hold primary contests which could all but determine each party's nominee for president. Voting states include: Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Georgia, Idaho (Democrats), Illinois, Kansas (Democrats), Massachusetts, Minnesota, Missouri, New Jersey, New Mexico (Democrats), New York, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Tennessee and Utah.

February 9 until June 3: Nominating contests in remaining states.

August 25-28: Democratic National Convention in Denver, Colorado.

September 1-4: Republican National Convention in Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minnesota.

November 4: U.S. voters elect a president, vice president, all 435 members of the House of Representatives and 35 members of the 100-seat Senate.

(Reporting by Jeremy Pelofsky; Editing by Patricia Zengerle)

(To read more about the U.S. political campaign, visit Reuters "Tales from the Trail: 2008" online at blogs.reuters.com/trail08/)