Presidential Candidates A Voter’s Guide to the
W ith the presidential primaries just around the corner, the AMAC editorial team is delighted to offer our members a voter’s guide to the presi- dential candidates — including candidates across the polit- ical spectrum. For those who have not been closely following the prima- ries, here’s a brief summary of the race thus far before we profile the candidates. In the Republican primary, Donald Trump has dominated the field for months, polling 40 to 60 percent ahead of other GOP contenders. Yet the other Republican candi- dates still make the case that they have a path to victory. Not surprisingly, most candidates are focused on the historically first three primary states: Iowa on January 15, South Carolina on February 24, and New Hampshire likely in January, though due to a dispute with the Democratic National Convention, the date has not been finalized at the time of this writing. While Ron DeSantis and Tim Scott, are focused on winning over socially conservative voters in Iowa, Nikki Haley, Vivek Ramaswamy, and Chris Christie have tilted their focus toward securing a victory in New Hampshire. Scott and Haley, both South Carolinians, are also both vying for voters in their home state. In the Democrat primary, President Joe Biden is running for re-election without a formidable contender thus far.
Though two in three Democrat-leaning voters don’t want Biden to run again, according to a September CNN poll, party leaders are standing behind Biden’s bid for re-elec- tion. They have not forgotten the last time a serious contender ran against a Democratic president. As journal- ist Jon Ward has argued, Ted Kennedy’s challenge to Jimmy Carter in the 1980 election “broke the Democratic Party” and resulted in Republican candidate Ronald Reagan winning the general election. Perhaps this history is one reason Democrats are concerned about Robert F. Kennedy’s ascendence as an independent in the race. Yet the GOP also has reason to be concerned, as a recent USA Today/Suffolk University Poll shows that Kennedy could pull just enough votes away from Trump to hand Biden a victory. But as recent elections have shown, polling predictions are certainly no substitute for voting. So, as AMAC members prepare to vote in primary elections across the country, we hope this voter guide provides the fair reporting and facts you need to make an informed decision. Following the profiles of each major candidate, we have included a chart that summarizes the positions of each candidate on five major policy areas consistently important to AMAC members.
First: President Donald J. Trump on page 28
Volume 17 Issue 6 • 27
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