Joe Biden won the party’s nomination in March but does not face any serious challenges. (document)
President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump will face off against each other in the U.S. presidential election on November 5 in what looks to be a divisive and bitter contest. A number of third-party candidates are also running.
Here is the list of candidates:
Donald Trump
Trump, who served from 2017 to 2021, has secured enough delegates to secure the Republican nomination, opening the first presidential reelection in nearly 70 years.
He used unprecedented legal challenges to solidify support among his base and ran for the White House for a third time, driven in part by revenge against perceived political opponents. He has called supporters imprisoned in connection with the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol “hostages” and has used increasingly dystopian rhetoric in campaign speeches.
Trump, 77, faces prosecution in four criminal cases for trying to subvert the 2020 election, as well as illegally preserving classified national security documents and falsifying business records.
He has said without evidence that the criminal charges are a Democratic conspiracy to prevent him from winning, and some of his legal challenges have gone to the U.S. Supreme Court. The U.S. Justice Department denies any political interference.
He has vowed revenge on political opponents if re-elected to a four-year term and said he would not become a dictator except “on day one”. He also wants the power to replace some federal civil servants with loyalists.
He said the United States would not protect NATO members that did not spend enough on defense and would encourage Russia to attack them, a move that sparked criticism from Western leaders. He also urged congressional Republicans to delay planned military aid to Ukraine.
Trump has made immigration a top issue of his domestic campaign, announcing that he would carry out mass deportations, create internment camps, use the National Guard, end birthright citizenship and expand travel bans on people from certain countries.
He has repeatedly called for the death penalty for drug dealers, said other alleged criminals could be shot and suggested he would unilaterally send federal troops into Democratic-controlled areas.
On abortion, Trump has been praised for the U.S. Supreme Court’s overturning of Roe v. Wade, but he has criticized six-week abortion bans in some Republican-led states and expressed support for a 15-week nationwide abortion ban ban. He has said he supports in vitro fertilization (IVF).
He also promised other sweeping changes, including rolling back Obamacare and undoing much of the Biden administration’s efforts to combat climate change.
Trump has yet to announce a vice presidential running mate. Mike Pence, who campaigned with Trump in 2016 and 2020, declined to endorse him in the November race.
Democratic Party
Joe Biden
Biden launched his 2020 candidacy as a defense of American freedom and democracy, and has considered his re-election campaign in the same light, saying Trump threatens the future of American democracy.
Biden won the party’s nomination in March but does not face any serious challenges.
The November election will be even tougher, with the latest Reuters/Ipsos poll showing Biden’s voter approval rating at 39%, one percentage point ahead of Trump’s 38%.
At 81, Biden is the oldest president in U.S. history and must convince voters that he is capable of governing for another four years and is a better candidate for the job than Trump, who is only four years younger, while dealing with low support rate issue.
The economy will also be a factor in his re-election bid. Even as the U.S. emerges from an expected recession and is growing faster than economists expected, inflation is set to hit a 40-year high in 2022 and the cost of essential goods is weighing on voters.
Biden pushed for a massive economic stimulus and infrastructure spending package early in his term to boost U.S. industrial output. He has so far gained little approval from voters and renewed efforts to emphasize the benefits of economic efforts such as new semiconductor manufacturing plants and plans to address housing costs.
Biden’s handling of immigration policy has also been criticized by Republicans and Democrats, as the number of migrants crossing the U.S.-Mexico border hit record highs during his administration.
He led Western governments’ response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, convincing allies to sanction Russia and support Kiev, and he also backed Israel’s conflict with Hamas in Gaza while pushing for more humanitarian aid.
However, Biden has faced sharp criticism from Democrats for not pushing for a ceasefire earlier and harder and for tougher words and actions against Israel. Groups pushing for a ceasefire have rallied tens of thousands of angry voters to vote “without taking a stand” in several Democratic primaries in which he was a candidate.
Vice President Kamala Harris, who once again serves as Biden’s running mate, also made outspoken remarks, urging Hamas to support an immediate six-week ceasefire and for Israel to develop a “credible” humanitarian plan.
Health officials in Gaza say more than 32,000 people have died, thousands of buildings have been damaged or destroyed, and residents are running out of food, water and medical supplies.
Marianne Williamson
Best-selling author and self-help guru Marianne Williamson, 71, has relaunched her long-shot bid for the 2024 nomination on a platform of “justice and love” less than a month after dropping out of the race.
In a statement in February, she said she had paused her campaign because she was losing the “horse race” but was re-engaging in the fight against Trump’s “dark and authoritarian vision.”
Although Biden surpassed the number of delegates needed to win the nomination, she has not yet concluded her campaign.
Williamson previously ran in the 2020 presidential primary as a Democrat but dropped out of the race before the vote.
independent
Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
Kennedy, 70, an anti-vaccine activist and environmental advocate who is now running as an independent after initially challenging Biden for the Democratic nomination, is trailing far behind in the polls.
Kennedy could steal votes from Trump and Biden, according to the latest Reuters/Ipsos poll released on March 14, which showed Kennedy had the support of 15% of registered voters.
Kennedy was the son of U.S. Sen. Robert F. Kennedy, who was assassinated in 1968 while running for president but was denounced by his famous family for his campaign.
A Super Bowl ad touting his relationship with his uncle, former President John F. Kennedy, angered his family and prompted an apology. Many members of the Kennedy family posed for photos with Biden at the White House on St. Patrick’s Day, and his relatives are reportedly stepping up their efforts to publicly support the president.
Kennedy expressed staunch support for Israel and questioned the need for a six-week ceasefire backed by Biden. He said he views the situation at the U.S. southern border as a humanitarian crisis and opposes Trump’s construction of a border wall.
He vowed to repeal key elements of the climate bill signed by Biden regarding tax breaks that he said would help the oil industry.
On the health front, Kennedy took a different stance on abortion. He has been criticized for years for making false medical claims about vaccines, but he said he would still allow Americans to get them.
He said he will choose his vice presidential running mate on March 26.
Cornel West
The political activist, philosopher and academic said in June that he would launch a third-party presidential campaign that could appeal to progressive, Democratic-leaning voters.
West, 70, originally ran as a Green Party candidate but announced in October that people “want good policy rather than partisan politics” and announced he was running as an independent. He promised to end poverty and secure housing.
jirstein
Physician Jill Stein re-upped her 2016 Green Party candidacy on Nov. 9, accusing Democrats of “betraying their commitment to working people, youth and the climate time and time again — while Republicans even No such commitment was made in the first place” place. “
After Trump’s unexpected victory in 2016, Stein, 73, raised millions of dollars for the recount. Her accusations produced only one election review in Wisconsin that showed Trump winning.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
