On November 5th, 2024, the United Sates of America will elect their next president. And the world is watching with all possible curious eyes and ears over the most happening event. The front-runners will almost certainly be the same as in 2020. Joe Biden, the current president, faces no viable competition for the Democratic nomination. His predecessor in office, Donald Trump, has all but won the Republican one. This would be the first rematch election in almost 70 years. After he lost the previous election, Trump’s supporters tried to overturn the result. He faces federal charges over his alleged participation in that scheme, as well as three other criminal cases. Whereas, Biden’s presidency has been defined by high inflation, big industrial-policy bills and turmoil abroad, in Afghanistan, Ukraine and the Middle East. Both contenders are equally unpopular. The election, however, will have a thin line of choice on which Americans think is the least bad option.
After securing their respective nominations on Wednesday, Biden and his predecessor Trump are set for a rematch between the rivals after four years. Both had already disposed of their primary challengers, secured enough delegates in the states of Mississippi, Washington and Georgia to push them over the threshold needed to become their parties’ nominees in the November election.
To choose a presidential nominee, an indirect election or primary is held where voters decide the number of delegates each party convention receives and these delegates in turn select the party’s presidential nominee. In primaries, candidates need a majority of delegate votes at the convention to win the party’s presidential nomination.
Soon after winning his nomination, Biden said, “Voters now have a choice to make about the future of this country. Are we going to stand up and defend our democracy or let others tear it down? Will we restore the right to choose and protect our freedoms or let extremists take them away?” Unfortunately, Biden’s return to the White House has been obstructed by majority voters believing he is too old to serve another four-year term. The ongoing crisis at the US-Mexico border, where an influx of migrants has overwhelmed the system, is another weakness for the 81-year-old leader.
On the other hand, Trump, who is the first former US president to go on trial in a criminal case to hide hush money payments to a porn star, has been juggling court appearances while on the campaign trail. He faces 91 felony counts on four indictments including attempting to overturn the 2020 election, and is also the only American president to be impeached twice.
While campaigning, Biden has set his narrative on three arguments. One, the economy is recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic and the accompanying recession — the “comeback story” he trumpets. Second, he promises to guide the country to a more prosperous and equitable future, financed by tax increases on corporations and the wealthy. And, third, he charges that Trump would “pull America back to the past” by restricting abortion rights and other freedoms.
However, his views are out of sync with most voters, who think otherwise and tell pollsters that the economy is in bad shape.
Trump’s narrative has a different story to tell. He says, “We are a nation whose economy is collapsing into a cesspool of ruin, whose supply chain is broken, whose stores are not stocked,” the all-but-certain Republican nominee claimed last week. “We are a nation where free speech is no longer allowed, where crime is rampant and out of control like never before.” It was an echo of his 2017 inaugural address, when he described the state of the nation as “American carnage.” The truth, however, is that the economy, far from collapsing, and growing at a healthy pace of about 2.5% a year; the supply chain disruptions of the pandemic are almost entirely over; and violent crime has dropped significantly since 2022.
The two leaders’ narratives are completely at odds on which the next eight months of campaigning will be based. Biden’s narratives are over-optimistic, whereas, Trump’s narratives are more unrealistic, out of sync with the reality that the economy is genuinely improving. The Americans are left with a tough choice to make, since none of them make great leaders unlike their predecessors America has seen. One can only wish for the best man to win for the United States of America.
