************************************ REPUBLICAN PRIMARY **********************
Trump Announces Bid to Win back White House
Former President Donald Trump on November 15, 2022 launched his third presidential campaign. He told a boisterous crowd at Mar-a-Lago during the day that U.S. was in a "state of decline" under Joe Biden and he would lead the nation to make it "great and glorious" again.
Haley is the First to Take on Trump
Former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley on February 14, 2023 said in a 3-and-1/2-minute video that she was running for presidency to provide "a new generation leadership".
******************* TIM SCOTT
Tim Scott Joins Republican Primary
Sen. Tim Scott on May 19, 2023 became the second South Carolinian to announce presidential bid in 2024 election as the lone GOP African-American Senator filed paperwork with the Federal Election Commission. He will formally launch his campaign on May 22, 2023 at his alma mater, Charleston Southern University.
Tim Scott dropped out of the race on November 12, 2023.
******************* TIM SCOTT
******************** RON DESANTIS
Ron DeSantis Enters Republican Fray
Florida Governor became the first politician to join the presidential race on Twitter as he announced his bid on May 24, 2023 on Twitter Space hours after filing paperwork with the Federal Election Commission on intention to run in the presidential polls.
DeSantis Unveils Tough Immigrant, Border Policy
Badly lagging in opinion poll behind Former President Donald Trump, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis on June 26, 2023 unveiled his policy on immigration and border security at a Texas border community, Eagle Pass, that centered on the old tactics that Trump had adopted in his first term, but with the pledge of a better follow-through. DeSantis said that he would ban birthright citizenship for the children of undocumented immigrants, complete the border walls, force migrants to stay outside the U.S. as their cases proceeded through the country's byzantine immigration system and require employers for tougher verification of employees' work eligibility.
DeSantis Bows out
After a humiliating second place finish in Iowa Caucuses, it was clear that Florida Governor Ron DeSantis was looking for an honorable exit. That moment arrived on January 21, 2024, two days before the nation's first Primary in New Hampshire, as DeSantis called it quits and endorsed his onetime bitter rival Donald Trump.
******************** RON DESANTIS
************** MIKE PENCE *********
Pence Challenges Former Boss, Joins the GOP Primary
Former Vice President Mike Pence on June 7, 2023 joined the race to win the Republican Primary and subsequently challenge President Joe Biden in the general election.
Pence Bows out
Out of luck, shunned by Donald Trump-brand right-wingers and rejected by major donors, Former Vice President Mike Pence on October 28, 2023 called it quits.
************** MIKE PENCE *********
Miami Mayor Becomes the Third Floridian to Join Presidential Primary
Miami Mayor Francis Suarez on June 14, 2023 filed paperwork with the Federal Election Commission to seek the Republican Party nomination for president. He announced his candidacy on June 15, 2023, and described it a "generational" endeavor. Suarez became the mayor in 2017 only as the second Cuban-American to become the chief steward of Miami--the first one was his father, Xavier Suarez--and was reelected in 2021.
Will Hurd Jumped into Republican Primary on June 22, 2023.
Hurd Drops out, Endorses Haley
Will Hurd's long-shot presidential campaign fizzled out as soon as it started and it was almost a sure thing from the get-go that he would bow out of the race. The day of reckoning for Hurd came a little over 100 days after the launch of his campaign. On October 9, 2023, Hurd, while suspending his campaign, endorsed former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley.
IOWA: Trump Scores a Blowout Victory in Iowa
Former President Donald Trump won convincingly in the January 15, 2024, Iowa Caucuses, with Ron DeSantis finishing second, Nikki Haley finishing third and Vivek Ramaswamy finishing a distant fourth.
Vivek Ramaswamy dropped out of the race on January 16, 2024 and endorsed Trump. His fluster-bluster approach and complaining nature reminds political observers about Dante's Inferno that describes hell in which "wrathful and sullen" will swim forever in the "black sulkiness" of the River Styx. Inflammatory and unfounded rhetoric so qualifies.
NEW HAMPSHIRE: Trump Emerges Winner
Former President Donald Trump made history as the first Republican presidential candidate to win Iowa and New Hampshire. Trump, who's facing 91 criminal charges, defeated Former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley in the January 23, 2024, first primary in the nation.
SOUTH CAROLINA: Trump Wins Primary
In a clean sweep, Former President Donald Trump won Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and on February 24, 2024, South Carolina. Former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley, only remaining contender in the Republican Primary, was electorally thrashed in her own state.
MICHIGAN PRIMARY Offers Warning Signals to Trump, Biden
In the February 27, 2024, Michigan Primary, Former President Donald Trump and President Joe Biden easily won. However, as the results show, Trump still struggles to get traction with suburban voters, especially college-educated women. For Biden, a north of 100K votes cast "UNCOMMITTED" reflect a deep disenchantment with Biden administration's handling of Israel-Hamas War.
D.C. Primary: Haley Bags First Win
In the Washington D.C. primary held March 3, 2024, Nikki Haley won with a convincing win.
Trump Wins North Dakota Caucus
Former President Donald Trump won the North Dakota caucus on March 4, 2024.
SUPER TUESDAY: Trump Bags Texas, Other States, Closes in on Clinching Nomination
After March 5, 2024, Super Tuesday, it's clear that the nation will witness a repeat of 2020 presidential election that many have dreaded. Former President Donald Trump won handily. Former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley suspended her campaign.
Trump, Biden Become Their Parties' Presumptive Nominees
After the Primaries in Mississippi, Georgia and Washington on March 12, 2024, President Joe Biden and Former President Donald Trump clinched their respective parties' nomination, setting up a rematch between the two deeply flawed and unpopular candidates and the first electoral slugfest between two presidents since 1912.
************************************ REPUBLICAN PRIMARY **********************
Democrats Upend the Primary Schedule
The long-held tradition of Iowa Caucuses to launch the presidential nomination is being thrown out by the DNC's rule-making arm in favor of giving more voice to the party's core constituency: African Americans. In 2024, the primary season will begin with South Carolina, according to the decision taken by the Democratic Party's rule-making committee on December 2, 2022. On December 1, 2022, President Joe Biden asked in a letter for the revamp of the party's primary calendar to better represent the say of party's core constituencies. Now, the recommendation of the party's rule-making panel goes to DNC which usually follows the recommendation. The recommendation throws away the position and stature of Iowa as a catapult to the race for the White House since 1972, followed by the first-in-the-nation primary state that New Hampshire had held since 1920.
Democrats Upends the Primary Calendar
DNC ratifies the changed calendars of 2024 Primary schedule on February 4, 2023 at a meeting in Philadelphia.
Biden Officially Announces that He is Seeking Re-election
In a little over three minutes of video, President Joe Biden on April 25, 2023 launched his re-election campaign, thus cementing his legacy as the oldest incumbent to seek reelection. President Joe Biden, who ran in 2020 Presidential Election on the plank of healing the "soul of America", asked Americans to give him another term to "finish the job". Biden named Julie Chavez Rodriguez as his campaign manager.
Dean Phillips Challenges Biden
Minnesota Rep. Dean Phillips announced on October 27, 2023 at the New Hampshire statehouse that he would challenge President Joe Biden for the Democratic Party's ticket for president.
Colorado Case Heard at the State Supreme Court
Colorado Supreme Court on December 6, 2023 heard on whether Donald Trump could be struck down from running the 2024 Presidential Election in the state under the Section 3 of the 14th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. Justices had plenty of questions for the both sides. Section 3 calls for prohibiting insurrectionists from running in Senate and House races as well as from becoming President and Vice President electors, but there is no specific stipulation barring them from running as a presidential candidate.
**************************** TRUMP DISBARMENT IN COLORADO ******************
Colorado Supreme Court Eliminates Trump from Colorado Ballot
In a setback to Former President Donald Trump and in an unprecedented development that has never happened before, Colorado Supreme Court on December 19, 2023 has removed Donald Trump from the 2024 ballot. The verdict was 4-3. The court, alluding Trump's role in encouraging insurrection, ruled that the former president had violated his oath of office under Section 3 of the 14th Amendment.
A lower court judge, Judge Sarah B. Wallace, ruled in November 2023 that Trump had engaged in insurrection on January 6, 2021, but retained him in the state's ballot as the Section 3 might not explicitly apply to the presidency. The suit was filed by six Republican and Independent voters of Colorado. The language in the Section 3 is confusing too as it pertains to "officers of the United States" who take an oath to support the Constitution. Trump's attorneys successfully persuaded the judge that the president is not an officer of the United States.
The Colorado Supreme Court has stayed on its order until January 4, 2024, or when the U.S. Supreme Court will rule on this case, whichever date comes earlier. Trump team is running short of time as Colorado will begin printing the primary ballots on January 5, 2024.
Trump's attorneys filed an emergency appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court on January 3, 2024.
Justices to Hold Hearing Before Super Tuesday
The U.S. Supreme Court is for the first time to hear a case related to the 14th Amendment of the Constitution. The 1868 Amendment is never tested by the nation's apex court, but the January 5, 2024, decision by the U.S. Supreme Court to take the case for a February 8, 2024, hearing will insert the justices into the vortex of presidential politics in the heat of an election season unlike anything seen before. Pending the final outcome, though, the Colorado Supreme Court's December 19, 2023, verdict is put abeyance.
U.S. Supreme Court Overturns Colorado Supreme Court Verdict
In an unsigned, 13-page verdict, the U.S. Supreme Court on March 4, 2024 tossed out Colorado Supreme Court's decision to disbar Former President Donald Trump from running for presidency. The apex court opined that it would be contrary to the constitution if some states allowed Trump to run for the presidential election, while the others barred the former president.
**************************** TRUMP DISBARMENT IN COLORADO ******************
Michigan Supreme Court Lets Trump Stay in the State's Ballot
Michigan Supreme Court on December 27, 2023 ruled that Former President Donald Trump could stay in the state's ballot for Primary, thus upholding the lower courts' rulings.
Maine Secretary of State Removes Trump from State's Primary Ballot
Foreshadowing another litigious battle, Trump campaign is gearing up to file a lawsuit after Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows on December 28, 2023 has announced to remove the former president from the state's primary ballot on the Constitution's insurrection clause. Bellows' directive is on hold pending the process shaken through the court system.
Trump's attorneys filed an appeal against Secretary Bellows' directive to the Maine Supreme Court on January 2, 2024.
