Update: The Democratic Race

As the year comes to a close, American citizens await to see what next year’s election has in store. The 2020 election, however, is one that is very out of the ordinary. The current President of the United States, Donald J. Trump, was just formally impeached on Wednesday, December 18, a process enacted by the Speaker of the United States House of Representatives, Nancy Pelosi.

With the impeachment process progressing, Democratic candidates are lining up for the primary election with the initiative to take Donald Trump down in the 2020 race. This Democratic “line,” however, does not consist of just one or two people; it consists of 15. 

The original count of Democratic candidates was almost doubled, until 13 candidates dropped out of the race. Senator Kamala Harris of California, one of the most high profile candidates, suspended her campaign and she claims she is “not a billionaire” and “can’t fund her own campaign.” Other well known politicians also thought it would be best to drop out of the race, including former Rep. Beto O'Rourke of Texas, Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand of New York, and New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio. 

So, who are the Democratic candidates for the 2020 race? The individual with the leading percentage of favoritism within the primary race is Joe Biden, former Vice President under the Obama Administration. He is one of the oldest candidates, running at the age of 76, but he has run for president two times before. He is one of the most experienced individuals within the race and is predicted to be in the primaries against incumbent Donald Trump.

Bernie Sanders, junior United States Senator from Vermont, is older than Biden, at 78. Sanders, who also has many years of experience, has continuously pushed the conversation for health care which has been the main topic of debate throughout the Democratic race. Although he is doing somewhat well within the polls, he has received a lot of criticism on his age as well as his health due to his recent heart attack. He remains persistent, nevertheless, as he has claimed that his health is now in order and that although dropping out of the race was considered, he feels that it is his duty to keep going and take Trump down with his “vigorous campaign.” 

As Joe Biden and Bernie Sanders remain at the top of the polls, Senator Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, Mayor Pete Buttigieg of South Bend, Indiana, Amy Klobuchar senior United States Senator of Minnesota, Andrew Yang entrepreneur, and Philanthropist Tom Steyer are expected to be competing in the next Democratic Debate.