2096 United States presidential election (Myles' World)

The 2096 United States presidential election was the 78th quadrennial presidential election, held on Tuesday, November 6, 2096. The Democratic ticket of Connecticut Governor, Melissa De Los Santos and North Carolina U.S. Senator, Cheryl Jones defeated the Republican ticket of Secretary of Business and former Indiana Governor, Austin Davis and Duquense U.S. Senator, Leia Guo. This election saw one of the highest turnouts in history at close to 72 percent. De Los Santos became the first Latina to be elected President. De Los Santos also received over 241 million votes, the most in history up to that date.

De Los Santos won the nomination in what was a field of 19. 14 other candidates were still in the race when the primaries began. At the end, there was no clear winner, and it came down to a contested convention. De Los Santos, who wasn't even expected to make it out of the primaries, won on the 6th ballot. De Los Santos announced her selection of U.S. Senator Cheryl Jones of North Carolina as her running mate on June 21, 2096.

Davis won a slightly bigger Republican primary, which had 20 candidates. No one outside of the midwest really knew his name until he started campaigning. When the primaries started, there were still 12 candidates in the running, and none of them won enough delegates to be the nominee. Davis won a contested convention against U.S. Senator Leia Guo of Duquense, Minnesota Governor Reed Bevenue, and Businessman John Velasquez. Davis announced his selection of Leia Guo as his running mate on July 2, 2096.

This election was mainly about the economy, the Yangtze War, which started in 2092 under President Gretchen Franklin, and immigration. However, after the Ganymede Rebellion in October, statehood for territories in the outer system also came in to play.

On election night, Democrats won big in house, senate, and gubernatorial races in most swing states, which gave them the advantage in projections. De Los Santos won multiple of the swing states on Earth like California, Kansas, New Mexico,Texas, and Wisconsin, while Davis won the swing state of Minnesota, Michigan, and Oregon. Davis narrowly won swing states on Mars, while De Los Santos won big in states on Luna and Venus. After the swing state of Tranquility was called for De Los Santos, it gave her enough electoral votes to win the election.

Background
Article Two of the United States Constitution provides that the President and Vice President of the United States must be citizens of the United States, at least 30 years old, and residents of the United States for a period of at least 14 years. Candidates for the presidency typically seek the nomination of one of the political parties, in which case each party devises a method (such as a primary election) to choose the candidate the party deems best suited to run for the position. Traditionally, the primary elections are indirect elections where voters cast ballots for a slate of party delegates pledged to a particular candidate. The party's delegates then officially nominate a candidate to run on the party's behalf. The general election in November is also an indirect election, where voters cast ballots for a slate of members of the Electoral College; these electors in turn directly elect the president and vice president.

President Gretchen Franklin, a Republican and former Senator, Governor, and Congresswoman from the state of Minnesota was ineligible for re-election to seek a third term due the restrictions in the Twenty-second Amendment; in accordance with Section 1 of the Twentieth Amendment, his term will expire at noon eastern standard time on January 20, 2141, when the next president is inaugurated.

During the Franklin presidency, there was a recession from 2094 to 2096. She also got the United States invovled in the Yangtze War, a conflict with a small Asian country on Mars. The conflict has killed over 200,000 Americans. Due to the oppression of minorities in the Yangtze Republic, there was an immigration surge in second term of the Franklin presidency. Vice President Gregory Delahoussey decided not to run for President.

Democratic Party
Main articles: 2096 Democratic Party presidential primaries and 2096 Democratic National Convention

Melissa De Los Santos became the presumptive nominee of the Democratic Party on June 20, 2096, at the Democratic convention.

Other Candidates
Eliminated at the Convention

Withdrew During the Primaries

Withdrew Before the Primaries

Republican Party
Main articles: 2096 Republican Party presidential primaries and 2096 Republican National Convention

Austin Davis became the presumptive nominee of the Republican Party on July 2, 2100 at the Republican convention.

Other Candidates
Eliminated at the Convention

Withdrew Before the Primaries