2024 United States Presidential Election (Biden, Trump Rematch)

The 2024 United States presidential election took place on Tuesday, November 5, 2024. It was the 60th quadrennial presidential election. Voters selected presidential electors who voted on December 14, 2024,[2] to select a new president and vice president. The election occured simultaneously alongside elections for the House of Representatives, Senate, and various state and local-level elections.

This election was effectively a rematch of the 2020 election. The Democratic ticket of incumbent President Joe Biden and incumbent Vice President Kamala Harris defeated the Republican ticket of former President Donald Trump and former Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley. Biden received 348 electoral votes and 52.2% of the popular vote, while Trump received 190 electoral votes and 45.6% of the popular vote.

Background
Despite numerous attempts by incumbent President Donald Trump and other Republicans to subvert the election results in 2020, Joe Biden was sworn into office on January 20th, 2021. Within the first 100 days of his administration, over 100 million doses of the Pfizer vaccine were distributed. By August 2021, Covid-19 infections had significantly dropped, and the pandemic was coming to an end. Biden’s first term had also seen high levels of economic growth with unemployment figures dropping from 6.7% to 4.3% by the summer of 2024. However, due to the Senate and House of Representatives becoming Republican in the 2022 Congressional Elections, the Biden administration was unable to pass serious reform that was urged by the Progressive Wing of the Democratic Party.

Democratic Nomination
Despite rumors that the 82-year-old incumbent president would not seek re-election, Joe Biden remained on good health throughout his first term and announced his intention to run for a second term in August, 2023. Very popular among democratic voters and seen as the unifying link between the moderate and progressive wings of the party, Joe Biden was easily renominated by the Democratic Party on the first ballot, along with incumbent vice president Kamala Harris.

Republican Nomination
Many candidates urged for the Republican nomination including former Governor of New Jersey Chris Christie, former Governor of Maryland Larry Hogan, U.S Representative from Florida Matt Gaetz, Talk Show Host Sean Hannity, and Activist Candace Owens. However, the leading front-runner was 78-year-old former President Donald Trump from Florida. Despite rumors of Trump running on a third-party ticket, Trump announced his intention to run for the Republican nomination on August 22nd, 2023.

Despite being unpopular with the general American public, Trump remained popular with his base. Trump finished first in the Iowa caucus and New Hampshire primary followed by Maryland Governor Larry Hogan. While Hogan beat Trump in the South Carolina primary, Trump picked up a wide majority of the delegates at Super Tuesday and was declared as the presumed Republican Nominee in late March.

Trump became the first person to be renominated three times for the presidency by a major political party since Richard Nixon in 1960, 1968, and 1972. In mid-July, he declared former Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley as his running mate, making her the second woman to be present on a Republican Presidential ticket.

Campaign
Biden held a wide lead in the opinion polls over Trump for the majority of the campaign, ranging from 9% to 12%. Biden campaigned on his dealing with the coronavirus pandemic, the fast-growing economy, on Trump’s personal flaws, and on the “misery and chaos” during Trump’s presidency. Trump campaigned almost entirely on the supposed “failure” of the Biden Administration’s foreign policy. Trump criticized the US-China Trade Deal of 2022, the Iran Nuclear Deal of 2022, and the United States rejoining the Paris Climate Accord. Trump also spread false and unsubstantiated rumors of election fraud in 2020, and claimed that he “should be president right now.”

Results
Joe Biden won the election with 348 electoral votes and 52.2% of the popular vote. Trump came in second place with 190 electoral votes and 45.6% of the popular vote, his worst showing ever in both the electoral and popular vote.

During this election, Joe Biden picked up the states of Florida and North Carolina which had voted for Trump in 2020. Biden became the first person in American history to be re-elected for a second, consecutive term without winning the state of Ohio. He also became the first Catholic President to win re-election in American history. Donald Trump became the first former president to lose a re-election bid for a second term twice.

Similarly to 2020, following the election, Trump’s team and other Republicans spread numerous fake rumors of election fraud and election rigging, threatening not to confirm the Electoral College vote.