United States presidential election, 2020 (The Instability Theorem)

The United States presidential election of 2020 was the 59th quadrennial presidential election. It was held on Tuesday, November 3, 2020. Incumbent President Donald Trump and his running mate Vice President Mike Pence tied with Democratic nominee Senator Cory Booker and his running mate Senator Kamala Harris, though the Republican controlled Congress voted for Donald Trump and Mike Pence.

Many political pundits believed Donald Trump would win re-election, due to keeping his promises to Rust Belt voters, like the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 and the Mining Jobs Act of 2019. However, Booker did campaign heavily in Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Maine, promising newer, higher-paying jobs. Using this campaign strategy, Booker was able to win many more states than Hillary Clinton won in 2016. Booker was popular among more moderate Democrats, though in the Democratic primaries, progressives and liberal Democrats backed Bernie Sanders, who said this would be his last presidential run.

This would be the last U.S presidential election using data from the 2010 census.

Republicans
Nominee: Incumbent Donald Trump

Running Mate: Mike Pence

Democrats
Nominee: Senator Cory Booker

Running Mate: Kamala Harris

Primaries
Bernie Sanders: Lost Primaries: May 3, 2020

Martin O'Malley: Withdrew during Primaries: May 1, 2020

Chris Murphy: Withdrew before Primaries: February 15, 2020

Kamala Harris: Withdrew before Primaries: February 6, 2020

Julian Castro: Withdrew before Primaries: January 21, 2020

House and Senate vote
As per the 12th Amendment, Congress would ultimately decide the President and Vice President. As of 2020, the House of Representatives was controlled by the Republicans and the Senate controlled by the Democrats. After the election, however, both chambers were controlled by Republicans. The House voted (27-21 [Maine and Minnesota were tied]) for Donald Trump on January 13, and the Senate voted (52-48) for Mike Pence on January 15.