On November 8, 2016, the United States starts its’ 58th presidential election. Taking place every four years, presidential campaigns and elections have evolved into a series of fiercely fought, and often times controversial, contests that are now played out in news medias throughout the United States and the world.
At least a dozen Republicans and a handful of Democrats have expressed an interest in running for their party’s 2016 Presidential nomination. With each passing day the list gets narrower. With President Obama being unable to seek re-election in 2016 due to constitutional term limits, he’ll sit in the back seat for this ride to paving history for the United States.
For the Democratic Party there are twenty-one individuals who have announced their candidacy. There are still twenty-three possible candidates who have filed and are waiting on confirmation. This is making the Democratic Party with forty-four possible candidates.
The Republican Party on the other hand has thirty-seven announced candidates who have already announced their candidacy and fifty-four possible candidates who have filed for the elections but are still waiting for their confirmation. This gives the Republican Party ninety-one possible candidates.
Running for the Democratic Party in the 2016 presidential election is Hillary Rodham Clinton, the former Secretary of State. Clinton has started campaigning in the last few weeks. Clinton would need to win over the Obama coalition of the black community and the young, college-educated voters who support President Barack Obama. Clinton would also need to maintain her base of support among the white working-class women. In order to win crucial states like Florida and Colorado, Clinton will need to convince Hispanics that she is with them every step of the way when it comes to immigration laws and other issues that are becoming more of an issue in politics.
Clinton’s message to all Americans is this, “Expect a nearly constant emphasis on leaving a better country to voters’ children and grandchildren. Clinton will weave in her own experiences as a mother and grandmother to try to persuade voters that she is best positioned to address income inequality and to aid the middle class. Her economic message will highlight issues that resonate with women in particular, including a higher minimum wage, paid family and medical leave, early childhood education, and affordable child care.”
Running under the Republican Party is United States Senator, Ted Cruz. Cruz has opened his presidential campaign headquarters in Houston, Texas. To win the republican nominations, Cruz will have to bring together the party’s anti-establishment wing, which is made of separate-but-overlapping voter blocs, including Christian conservatives, libertarians, and Tea Party voters that are angry with the leadership of both the Republican Party and the Democratic Party.
Senator Cruz’s message to the citizens of the United States of America is this; “Mr. Cruz will seek the Republican nomination by running not just as the most conservative candidate, but also as the boldest one in the field. He will emphasize his hardline stances against President Obama, particularly his attempt to defund the health care law, which made him a deeply unpopular figure among his party’s leaders.”
He goes on to state, “ He argues that in recent political history, Republicans have won only when they run as conservatives. Mr. Cruz’s message will be that he represents the most emphatic turn away from Mr. Obama and liberalism.”
As time progresses, the spot for President of the United States of America will be sought after by a multitude of highly qualified individuals. It is our job to determine “who” that right person is to lead this nation we call the United States of America.