Candidates, Candidates And More Candidates

With the first votes for the 2020 presidential election now just a little more than a year away many hopefuls have already thrown their hats into the ring.

With a Republican currently in the White House it will be the Democrats’ turn to have a dizzying amount of people seeking their party’s nomination.

Most probably remember the 2016 GOP primary where there were a remarkable number of candidates. In that 2016 Republican nomination battle it would be Donald Trump who would shock all of the so-called political experts by not only taking the nomination but ultimately becoming the next president. Believe me there were certainly many who never thought that was a possibility.

It just goes to show you nothing is guaranteed in politics, especially in the race for the White House.

Now that we are a few weeks into the 2019 calendar year, Democratic hopefuls are lining up and taking to the campaign trail. Already we have South Bend, Ind. mayor Pete Bittigieg, former U.S. Housing Secretary Julian Castro of Texas, former Congressman John Delaney of Maryland, Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard of Hawaii, U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand of New York, U.S. Senator Kamala Harris of California, Governor Jay Inslee of Washington, U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, businessman Andrew Yang of New York and former college football coach Robby Wells of Georgia.

While that may seem like a long list, in reality, it is only going to grow. There are also rumblings that former vice president Joe Biden is considering a run as well as 2016 candidates Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders. Any one of these three would immediately jump to the front of the already crowded Democratic field should they decide to get into the race.

It remains to be seen at this point if Donald Trump will have any serious competition for the Republican nomination. While it is not unheard of for an incumbent president to have a primary challenge (remember Pat Buchanan in 1992 against George Bush and Ted Kennedy against Jimmy Carter in 1980) it would take a political upset of epic proportions for the incumbent president to lose in his own party’s nomination process.

There has been some talk about a potential third party challenge in 2020 (outside of the Libertarian Party and Green Party who will always field candidates for president) but we have not seen a legit independent candidate since Ross Perot in 1992 and 1996. The most persistent rumors include John Kasich and Michael Bloomberg.

Jesse Ventura is also said to be considering running on the Green Party ticket. The former Minnesota governor, Navy Seal, actor and professional wrestler has said (in true pro wrestling style) that he could win a debate with President Trump due to his background in broadcasting and as a pro wrestler. It would certainly be an entertaining debate.

With President Trump flipping several states in 2016 the Democrats have their work cut out for them. While some would like for you to believe that President Trump is vulnerable he has proven time and time again that he can overcome any crisis which is in front of him.

There really has never been anyone in the White House like Donald Trump. While Ronald Reagan’s background was that of an actor he was so far removed from that by the time he began as president it was almost like a footnote. Reagan is more remembered as a governor and president now than as someone who at one time made a living in Hollywood.

Here in Georgia the big race statewide in 2020 will be for the US Senate seat currently held by David Perdue. Numerous Democrats, including 2018 nominee for governor Stacey Abrams, are eying the seat but it will be an uphill battle regardless of who wins the nomination.

It is also likely Perdue will have at least token opposition in the GOP primary but he will be the Republican nominee.

The 2020 races will be fascinating to watch and, who knows, we might just witness the unbelievable again.

Monticello native Chris Bridges is long time newspaper columnist. He has earned awards for his columns from the Georgia Press Association, the National Newspaper Association and the Georgia Sports Writers Association. He welcomes feedback from readers of The Monticello News at pchrisbridges@gmail.com.>/i>