Who's Who in the Race for the White House
We’ve all heard about the upcoming presidential election that’s taken over the news lately. Controversies over Elizabeth Warren, snowstorm speeches from Amy Klobuchar, and an already-suspended campaign from Richard Ojeda have set this race off to an interesting start. No one was surprised when President Trump announced his run for re-election, but many of the others have come out of the woodwork, candidates like Marianne Williamson and Andrew Yang.
So, you’ve heard all about it, but maybe you haven’t had the time to comb through all the campaign websites and learn about our 2020 candidates. That brings us to the main point of this article: Who’s who in the race for the White House?
Donald Trump - Republican
Surely, everyone knows of our current president, businessman and former television persona Donald Trump, who decided to run for re-election the day he was inaugurated to his first term. His campaign for the last election centered primarily around building a border wall with Mexico, a promise yet to be fulfilled. With little said yet about new undertakings for 2020, will his campaign yet again focus on the wall?
For more about Trump’s campaign, here is his website: https://www.donaldjtrump.com/
Elizabeth Warren - Democrat
Massachusetts State Senator Elizabeth Warren has recently jumped into the race for President, bringing with her many ideals for a brighter future, such as rebuilding the middle class, strengthening the democracy, and a foreign policy for all. Involved in politics since 1995, she certainly brings with her experience and knowledge of how the law-making part of our country works. Will her experience and idealistic goals be enough to get her the presidency?
For more about Warren’s campaign, here is her website: https://elizabethwarren.com/
Bernie Sanders - Democrat
Bernie Sanders has made the decision to run for president for the second time, after losing to Hillary Clinton in the Democratic Primary in 2016. His main issues in his last election were affordable healthcare and education, something the people deemed unrealistic. Sanders has set a record, raising over five million dollars in the first twenty-four hours since his announcement. However, many people didn’t agree with his extreme views four years ago, will they now?
For more about Sanders’s campaign, here’s his website: www.berniesanders.com
Cory Booker - Democrat
New Jersey senator Cory Booker has thrown his hat in the ring and joined the race for president. Many took note of the significant date of his announcement to run, made on February first - the first day of Black History month. Booker’s core issues in the past have been social and criminal justice reform. Will helping to change criminal reform be what he pursues during the race?
For more about Booker’s campaign, here’s his website: www.corybooker.com
Kamala Harris - Democrat
California senator Kamala Harris announced her run for president almost a month ago, dubbing her campaign ‘Kamala Harris for the People’. She’s made history in her past political positions, as the second African-American woman in the U.S. Senate, and the first ever woman to be California’s Attorney General. Mainly fighting for the middle class and the criminal justice system, her campaign name makes sense. Will the people be for Kamala as she is for them?
For more about Harris’s campaign, here’s her website: www.kamalaharris.org
Tulsi Gabbard - Democrat
Hawaii State Representative and United States army veteran Tulsi Gabbard would like to be our next president. Gabbard supports abortion rights, affordable medicare for all, and recently has changed her views on LGBT+ rights to be wholly supportive of the movement. She has served in the Hawaii Army National Guard since 2004, and remains a Major. Using her native Hawaiian heritage, she says on her website that ‘by standing in a spirit of aloha’ we can overcome anything. Will she be able to overcome all of her opponents and be our next president?
For more about Gabbard’s campaign, here’s her website: www.tulsi2020.com
John Delaney - Democrat
The first Democrat to announce his run for president, John Delaney has been in the race for almost two years. Delaney beat ten-term Republican incumbent Roscoe Barnett for his House seat, serving from 2013 to 2019, choosing not to run for re-election so that he could, instead, focus on his presidential campaign. His main issues center around strengthening society, whether it be by more jobs and economic growth, or ensuring that everyone has healthcare and an opportunity to live their American Dream.
For more about Delaney’s campaign, here’s his website: www.johnkdelaney.com
Julián Castro - Democrat
Former San Antonio mayor and Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, Julián Castro is running for president, saying that he wants to give back to the country what it has given to him; he’s made the bold pledge to say that during the campaign, he will visit all 50 states. Castro has been a strong advocate for LGBT+ and abortion rights, as well as medicare for all and universal pre-kindergarten; while mayor of San Antonio, he implemented one of those programs. Will Castro be able to give back to his country as president?
For more about Castro’s campaign, here’s his website: www.julianforthefuture.com
Andrew Yang - Democrat
The founder of Venture for America, Andrew Yang, is running for president. Some are calling his ideas uninformed and far-fetched, his main issues being Universal Basic Income and Human-Centered Capitalism. Even though he has never been in office before, Yang is confident that he can advance in this race due to experience with his non-profit, Venture For America. He calls his campaign Andrew Yang for the Future, because he says that he fears for the future of our country. Will he have the opportunity to protect it?
For more about Yang’s campaign, here’s his website: www.yang2020.com
Amy Klobuchar - Democrat
U.S. Senator from Minnesota Amy Klobuchar announced her presidential run at a snowy, outdoor event a few weeks ago, surrounded by mounds of snow and ice, as well as thousands of supporters; this announcement is bound to be remembered, and maybe that’ll keep Klobuchar in minds as well. She supports pro-choice rights and LGBT+ rights, and was critical of the Iraq war. She says that she is running because she wants us to be a nation not governed by chaos but by opportunity. Will she have the opportunity to be president?
For more about Klobuchar’s campaign, here’s her website: www.amyklobuchar.com
Marianne Williamson - Democrat
Author and activist Marianne Williamson has decided to run for president, with around twenty issues listed on her website that she wants to help. After a failed run for a seat in the House of Representatives, she switched parties from Independent to Democrat. She wants to focus on child advocacy, education, and climate change, among other things. Having had no previous political experience, will she be able to win this race?
For more about Williamson’s campaign, here’s her website: www.marianne2020.com
Kirsten Gillibrand - Democrat
New York state senator Kirsten Gillibrand has announced her run for president, saying that she wants to fight for the nation’s kids as hard as she would fight for her own. Usually known as a centrist or “Blue Dog Democrat,” she has been seen as conservative when it comes to fiscal issues. Since being elected to the House, however, she has shifted to more liberal issues such as abortion rights, medicare, and sexual harassment. Will she be able to keep fighting for the country?
For more about Gillibrand’s campaign, here’s her website: https://kirstengillibrand.com/
Pete Buttigieg - Democrat
Mayor of South Bend, Indiana and Army veteran Pete Buttigieg is running for president, making history as the first openly gay Democratic candidate. Barack Obama has named Buttigieg one of the four Democrats who represents the future of the party. He’s certainly done a lot for his people, having completed around seven months in Afghanistan in the army and a two terms as mayor. Will he be able to continue serving?
For more about Buttigieg’s campaign, here’s his website: https://www.peteforamerica.com
John Hickenlooper - Democrat
Former governor of Colorado, John Hickenlooper, announced his run for president not too long ago. As governor, his issues were mainly cannabis legalization, helping to end homelessness, gun control, and his position against the death penalty. He was also the mayor of Denver before being governor. With views that some oppose, can he win the election?
For more about Hickenlooper’s campaign, here’s his website: www.hickenlooper.com
Jay Inslee - Democrat
Former Washington state governor Jay Inslee is running for president, saying that he runs because he is the only candidate who will make climate change the country’s number one priority. He seems to want to center his campaign around climate change, stating on his website that he will not take fossil fuel money. With only one main issue, can he make it to the White House?
For more about Inslee’s campaign, here’s his website: www.jayinslee.com
Main source: https://www.cnn.com/2019/01/16/us/2020-presidential-candidates-fast-facts/index.html
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2019/us/politics/2020-presidential-candidates.html
Beto O’Rourke - Democrat
Former Texas representative Beto O’Rourke is the latest announcement in the race for President. He rose to political fame after very narrowly losing to Ted Cruz for Texas Senate in 2018. Having been described as a liberal centrist, he believes in legalization of cannabis and maybe marijuana, is in favor of federal aid for public schools in lower income areas, and enacting gun control. After losing so narrowly in his last election, can his newfound fame help him pull off a win?
For more about O’Rourke’s campaign, here’s his website: www.betoorourke.com
Joe Biden - Democrat
Former two-term vice president to Barack Obama, Joe Biden, as announced his run for president, stating that America is on the brink of being fundamentally changed forever if Trump gets another four year; and he can’t stand by and watch it happen. He has immediately become a front-runner in the election, drawing in many of Obama’s former fans. Biden has already began reaching out to former foes (for lack of a better word) to try and clear the air between them. His main mantra for this election seems to be that ‘America is an idea’. In line with this, he wants to rebuild the middle class, recommit to allies that Trump had cut ties with, and ‘battle for the soul of America’. There’s no doubt that Biden has the most experience and is probably the most qualified, but will he be regarded as too old to run?
For more about Biden’s campaign, here’s his website: www.joebiden.com