US elections 2024, who are the candidates

Update July 24, 2024

Who are the candidates?

The US presidential race was characterized by a wide range of candidates with varied backgrounds and not necessarily from political backgrounds who found themselves competing in the shadow of the same two men who won the nomination in 2020: President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump.

The plurality of would-be leaders, however, was an important reflection of the complexity and diversity of the American political landscape.

While some candidates are already well known in the political world, others have emerged as outsiders, advancing new ideas and perspectives. But competing against Trump's fierce and loyal supporters has not been easy, and most of the Republican challengers have been forced to end their campaigns before voting had even begun. On July 21, Biden himself dropped out after weeks of pressure from Democrats (and voters) who feared he was no longer able to win against Trump.

The last remaining candidates are competing on several fronts, juggling public speeches, meetings with voters and media campaigns, and the ambitious attempt to win popular support and secure their party's nomination.

Republicans

Donald
Trump

dropped out

Doug
Burgum

Chris
Christie

Ron
DeSantis

Larry
Elder

Nikki
Haley

Will
Hurd

Asa
Hutchinson

Perry
Johnson

Mike
Pence

Vivek
Ramaswamy

Tim
Scott

Francis
Suarez

Democrats

Kamala
Harris

dropped out

Joe
Biden

Jason
Palmer

Marianne
Williamson

Independents

Robert
Kennedy

Cornel
West

Jill
Stein

Chase
Oliver

Donald Trump

REPUBBLICAN CANDIDATE

Former President Donald J. Trump is seeking reelection to regain the office he lost in 2020, then vigorously contesting the outcome and ultimately goading a group of his followers to storm the United States Capitol.

Despite experiencing a decrease in sway within the Republican Party and being subject to legal scrutiny from state agencies and the Justice Department, Trump still commands a sizable and fiercely loyal following. Moreover, in the 2024 primary, he might benefit from several contenders dividing an insufficiently consolidated anti-Trump electorate.

Abortion

Climate change

War in Ukraine

Immigration

Economic policy

Transgender rights

Few Republicans, if any, have had as significant an impact on abortion rights as Trump: he selected three out of the six Supreme Court justices who overturned Roe v. Wade and the judge who annulled the authorization of the abortion pill mifepristone. He has also privately endorsed a 16-week prohibition.

His actions as president may have caused irreversible damage to the global climate. While in the White House, he rolled back more than 100 environmental regulations, mostly aimed at reducing planet-warming emissions and protecting clean air and water. He has mocked climate science and championed the production of the fossil fuels chiefly responsible for warming the planet.

Trump said the war is not a vital U.S. interest. While he declared that the war “must end”, he also said that “this fight is far more important for Europe than it is for the U.S.”. In 2019 he was impeached for withholding aid to Ukraine to pressure Volodymyr Zelensky to help him electorally. He also suggested that he could have prevented the war by ceding Ukrainian land to Russia.

Trump’s policies strengthened hard-line immigration stances in the G.O.P. mainstream. If re-elected, he intends to gather undocumented immigrants and confine them in camps until deportation; implement a method of expulsion that bypasses due process hearings; and authorize local police officers and National Guard troops from Republican-led states to carry-out immigration raids.

While president, he blended traditional Republican economic principles with populism. He enacted $1.5 trillion in tax cuts in 2017, permanently decreasing corporate taxes from 35 percent to 21 percent and temporarily lowering taxes for individuals, including the wealthiest Americans. The individual tax reductions are set to expire after 2025 unless Congress prolongs them.

While president, he rolled back transgender rights: he barred transgender service members from the military, eliminated protections against discrimination by doctors and insurers, and rescinded rules that allowed transgender students to use bathrooms matching their gender identity. If re-elected again, he has vowed to ban medically endorsed transition care for minors nationwide and order the Justice Department to investigate hospitals that provide transition surgeries, among other things.

Kamala Harris

DEMOCRATIC CANDIDATE

Kamala Harris is the 49th vice president of the United States, the first woman and the first person of African American and South Asian descent to hold this office. Born in California, she is the daughter of Jamaican and Indian immigrants. Before entering politics, Harris worked as a district attorney in San Francisco and as attorney general of California.

She was elected U.S. senator for California in 2016. Harris is known for her commitment to criminal justice, civil rights and public health and for a strong focus on social issues and equity. She succeeded Joe Biden in the race for the White House on July 21.

Abortion

Climate change

War in Ukraine

Immigration

Economic policy

Transgender rights

She strongly supports women's right to abortion and protection of reproductive rights. She said that “fundamentally, on this issue, it's about freedom.” In early 2024 Harris became the first vice president or president to visit an abortion center as part of a reproductive freedoms tour.

She takes a proactive stance, advocating for decisive action to address this crisis. It promotes policies to reduce carbon emissions, invest in renewable energy and create green jobs. She also supports adherence to international climate agreements, such as the Paris Agreement, and incentivizes measures for environmental justice, especially for communities most vulnerable to the effects of climate change.

She expressed strong support for Ukraine, stressing the importance of maintaining a united and decisive response from the international community. Harris believes it is crucial to defend Ukrainian sovereignty and condemn Russian aggression.

She has taken a position in favor of comprehensive immigration reform, advocating an approach that combines border security with expansion of legal pathways, including a pathway to citizenship for undocumented immigrants. She also promotes improving conditions in detention centers and eliminating policies it considers inhumane or discriminatory.

She supports economic policy that aims to reduce inequality and promote inclusive growth. Supports investment in infrastructure, education and health care to stimulate the economy and create good-paying jobs. She supports an increase in the minimum wage, tax reforms to ensure that the wealthiest contribute fairly, and support programs for low-income families.

She is an outspoken advocate, supporting the inclusion of transgender rights in all areas of public life, including access to health services, education and employment. She also supports policies that ensure gender recognition and self-determination for transgender people.

Jason Palmer

DEMOCRATIC CANDIDATE

Jason Palmer, a relatively little-known entrepreneur with a background in companies such as Microsoft and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, tied with President Biden in American Samoa, securing three out of the six delegates from the small island territory, along with 11 more votes than the president.

His campaign focuses on education, healthcare accessibility, climate change, and immigration.

Marianne Williamson

DEMOCRATIC CANDIDATE

Marianne Williamson, a self-help writer and previous spiritual counselor to Oprah Winfrey, is running for the second time: during her unsuccessful 2020 bid, she advocated for establishing a federal Department of Harmony, endorsed reparations for slavery, and characterized Trumpism as a manifestation of an illness within the American psyche that cannot be remedied solely through political measures.

Furthermore, she has promoted contentious or debunked medical hypotheses, particularly regarding mental health conditions.

Jill Stein

INDEPENDENT CANDIDATE

Jill Stein, a physician who ran for president under the Green Party banner in 2012 and in 2016, is seeking the party's nomination for the third time. In her campaign announcement video, she advocated for an "economic bill of rights," encompassing guaranteed employment, healthcare, housing, nourishment, and education. She also emphasized her commitment to addressing climate change and safeguarding abortion and transgender rights.

During the 2016 election, Stein amassed approximately 1.4 million votes, with some Democrats blaming her for pulling support from Hillary Clinton in pivotal states.

Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

INDEPENDENT CANDIDATE

Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a nephew of former President John F. Kennedy, has emerged as a prominent figure in the anti-vaccine movement. Initially seeking the Democratic nomination, he later opted to run as an independent in October. Kennedy has propagated discredited assertions linking childhood vaccines to autism, vehemently opposed coronavirus vaccine mandates, and criticized other pandemic containment measures, drawing comparisons to Nazi Germany for which he subsequently apologized.

Once renowned as an environmental lawyer involved in the Hudson River cleanup, his anti-vaccine stance has strained relations within his tight-knit political family.

Cornel West

INDEPENDENT CANDIDATE

Cornel West is a philosophy professor at Union Theological Seminary. Previously, he taught at prestigious universities, including Yale, Princeton, and Harvard. Renowned for his progressive activism, West has harshly critized former President Barack Obama.

Initially aligned with the People's Party, a third-party entity spearheaded by a former campaign aide to Senator Bernie Sanders, West said he would seek the Green Party's nomination before opting to run as an independent candidate.

Chase Oliver

INDEPENDENT CANDIDATE

A left-wing libertarian, he narrowly won the nomination in May. He said he became politically active as an opponent of the war in Iraq. He opposes Israel's actions in Gaza and wants to abolish the Federal Reserve. He was running for the Georgia Senate in 2022, getting about 2 percent of the vote.