Vivek Ramaswamy

Subterms

    Latest story

    188 Shares174 Views

    Who is running for president in 2024? Harris, Trump and the full list of candidates

    by

    @font-face{font-family:Guardian Headline Full;src:url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Light.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Light.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Light.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:300;font-style:normal}@font-face{font-family:Guardian Headline Full;src:url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-LightItalic.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-LightItalic.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-LightItalic.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:300;font-style:italic}@font-face{font-family:Guardian Headline Full;src:url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Regular.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Regular.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Regular.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:400;font-style:normal}@font-face{font-family:Guardian Headline Full;src:url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-RegularItalic.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-RegularItalic.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-RegularItalic.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:400;font-style:italic}@font-face{font-family:Guardian Headline Full;src:url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Medium.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Medium.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Medium.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:500;font-style:normal}@font-face{font-family:Guardian Headline Full;src:url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-MediumItalic.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-MediumItalic.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-MediumItalic.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:500;font-style:italic}@font-face{font-family:Guardian Headline Full;src:url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Semibold.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Semibold.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Semibold.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:600;font-style:normal}@font-face{font-family:Guardian Headline Full;src:url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-SemiboldItalic.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-SemiboldItalic.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-SemiboldItalic.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:600;font-style:italic}@font-face{font-family:Guardian Headline Full;src:url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Bold.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Bold.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Bold.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:700;font-style:normal}@font-face{font-family:Guardian Headline Full;src:url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-BoldItalic.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-BoldItalic.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-BoldItalic.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:700;font-style:italic}@font-face{font-family:Guardian Headline Full;src:url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Black.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Black.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Black.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:900;font-style:normal}@font-face{font-family:Guardian Headline Full;src:url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-BlackItalic.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-BlackItalic.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-BlackItalic.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:900;font-style:italic}@font-face{font-family:Guardian Titlepiece;src:url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-titlepiece/noalts-not-hinted/GTGuardianTitlepiece-Bold.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-titlepiece/noalts-not-hinted/GTGuardianTitlepiece-Bold.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-titlepiece/noalts-not-hinted/GTGuardianTitlepiece-Bold.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:700;font-style:normal}@media (min-width: 71.25em){.content__main-column–interactive{margin-left:160px}}@media (min-width: 81.25em){.content__main-column–interactive{margin-left:240px}}.content__main-column–interactive .element-atom{max-width:620px}@media (max-width: 46.24em){.content__main-column–interactive .element-atom{max-width:100%}}.content__main-column–interactive .element-showcase{margin-left:0}@media (min-width: 46.25em){.content__main-column–interactive .element-showcase{max-width:620px}}@media (min-width: 71.25em){.content__main-column–interactive .element-showcase{max-width:860px}}.content__main-column–interactive .element-immersive{max-width:1100px}@media (max-width: 46.24em){.content__main-column–interactive .element-immersive{width:calc(100vw – var(–scrollbar-width));position:relative;left:50%;right:50%;margin-left:calc(-50vw + var(–half-scrollbar-width))!important;margin-right:calc(-50vw + var(–half-scrollbar-width))!important}}@media (min-width: 46.25em){.content__main-column–interactive .element-immersive{transform:translate(-20px);width:calc(100% + 60px)}}@media (max-width: 71.24em){.content__main-column–interactive .element-immersive{margin-left:0;margin-right:0}}@media (min-width: 71.25em){.content__main-column–interactive .element-immersive{transform:translate(0);width:auto}}@media (min-width: 81.25em){.content__main-column–interactive .element-immersive{max-width:1260px}}.content__main-column–interactive p{color:#121212;max-width:620px}.content__main-column–interactive ul{max-width:620px}.content__main-column–interactive:before{position:absolute;top:0;height:calc(100% + 15px);min-height:100px;content:””}@media (min-width: 71.25em){.content__main-column–interactive:before{border-left:1px solid #dcdcdc;z-index:-1;left:-10px}}@media (min-width: 81.25em){.content__main-column–interactive:before{border-left:1px solid #dcdcdc;left:-11px}}.content__main-column–interactive .element-atom{margin-top:0;margin-bottom:0;padding-bottom:12px;padding-top:12px}.content__main-column–interactive p+.element-atom{padding-top:0;padding-bottom:0;margin-top:12px;margin-bottom:12px}.content__main-column–interactive .element-inline{max-width:620px}#maincontent,.article__body{margin-top:0}#maincontent h2+p >sup,.article__body h2+p >sup{font-family:Guardian Headline,Guardian Egyptian Web,Guardian Headline Full,Georgia,serif;font-size:18px;line-height:1.1;font-weight:100;top:unset;vertical-align:unset}#maincontent h2+p,.article__body h2+p{display:block;margin-bottom:15px}#maincontent a sup,.article__body a sup{font-family:Guardian Headline,Guardian Egyptian Web,Guardian Headline Full,Georgia,serif;display:inline;font-size:18px;line-height:1.1;font-weight:100;margin-bottom:10px;top:unset;vertical-align:unset}#maincontent h2 strong,.article__body h2 strong{display:flex;align-items:center;background-image:repeating-linear-gradient(to bottom,#dcdcdc,#dcdcdc .0625rem,transparent .0625rem,transparent .25rem);background-repeat:repeat-x;background-position:top;background-size:.0625rem .8125rem;padding-top:20px;font-size:40px;margin-bottom:30px}#maincontent h2,#maincontent ul,.article__body h2,.article__body ul{max-width:620px}@media (min-width: 71.25em){article.content–interactive .content–interactive-grid{grid-template-areas:”title border headline” “. border standfirst” “. border meta” “. border meta” “body body body” “. . .”!important}}.element–thumbnail picture,.element–thumbnail img,.figure–thumbnail picture,.figure–thumbnail img{border-radius:100%;overflow:hidden}#gv-atom-layout{padding-top:20px}@media (min-width: 71.25em){#maincontent .element–thumbnail{margin-left:0;float:unset}}.gu-dropped-out{filter:grayscale(.8) opacity(.3) contrast(1.8)}.ios .prose h2,.android .prose h2{font-size:24px;line-height:1.2}.element.element-atom{padding:0}#main-media .main-media-wrapper,[data-gu-name=media] .main-media-wrapper{position:relative}#main-media .main-media-wrapper figure,[data-gu-name=media] .main-media-wrapper figure{margin:0 -10px}@media (min-width: 30em){#main-media .main-media-wrapper figure,[data-gu-name=media] .main-media-wrapper figure{margin:0 -20px}}@media (min-width: 46.25em){#main-media .main-media-wrapper figure,[data-gu-name=media] .main-media-wrapper figure{margin:0}}#main-media .main-media-wrapper figure #caption-button,[data-gu-name=media] .main-media-wrapper figure #caption-button{display:none}@media (max-width: 46.24em){#main-media .main-media-wrapper figure #caption-button,[data-gu-name=media] .main-media-wrapper figure #caption-button{display:block;position:absolute;bottom:10px;right:0;z-index:100;background-color:#121212b8;border:none;border-radius:50%;padding:6px 5px 5px}#main-media .main-media-wrapper figure #caption-button svg,[data-gu-name=media] .main-media-wrapper figure #caption-button svg{transform:scale(.85)}}@media (max-width: 46.24em) and (min-width: 30em){#main-media .main-media-wrapper figure #caption-button,[data-gu-name=media] .main-media-wrapper figure #caption-button{right:20px}}@media (max-width: 46.24em){#main-media .main-media-wrapper figure figcaption,[data-gu-name=media] .main-media-wrapper figure figcaption{position:absolute;bottom:0;padding:4px 10px 12px;background-color:#000;max-width:unset;width:100vw;margin-bottom:0;min-height:46px}#main-media .main-media-wrapper figure figcaption span,[data-gu-name=media] .main-media-wrapper figure figcaption span{color:#fff}#main-media .main-media-wrapper figure figcaption span svg,[data-gu-name=media] .main-media-wrapper figure figcaption span svg{fill:#fff}#main-media .main-media-wrapper figure figcaption span:nth-of-type(1),[data-gu-name=media] .main-media-wrapper figure figcaption span:nth-of-type(1){display:none}#main-media .main-media-wrapper figure figcaption span:nth-of-type(2),[data-gu-name=media] .main-media-wrapper figure figcaption span:nth-of-type(2){display:block;max-width:90%}}@media (max-width: 46.24em) and (min-width: 30em){#main-media .main-media-wrapper figure figcaption,[data-gu-name=media] .main-media-wrapper figure figcaption{padding:4px 20px 12px}}@media (max-width: 46.24em){#main-media .main-media-wrapper figure figcaption.hidden,[data-gu-name=media] .main-media-wrapper figure figcaption.hidden{opacity:0}}@media (min-width: 46.25em){#main-media .main-media-wrapper figure figcaption,[data-gu-name=media] .main-media-wrapper figure figcaption{max-width:620px}}.element-showcase figcaption{position:relative;width:unset;max-width:620px}@media (min-width: 71.25em){article.content–interactive .content–interactive >div{grid-template-areas:”title border headline” “. border standfirst” “meta border media” “. border media” “body body body” “. . .”}.keyline-4,[data-gu-name=lines]{grid-area:meta}#meta,[data-gu-name=meta]{margin-top:14px}}body.immersive-main-media nav+section{display:none}body.immersive-main-media nav+aside{display:none}body.immersive-main-media aside+section{display:none}body.immersive-main-media article.content–interactive .content–interactive >div.immersive-main-media{grid-template-areas:”standfirst” “lines” “meta” “body” “.”}@media (min-width: 71.25em){body.immersive-main-media article.content–interactive .content–interactive >div.immersive-main-media{grid-template-areas:”. border standfirst” “meta border body” “. border body” “. . .”}body.immersive-main-media article.content–interactive .content–interactive >div.immersive-main-media .content__main-column–interactive{margin-left:0}}body.immersive-main-media .immersive-header-wrapper{width:100vw;position:relative;margin-left:-10px}@media (min-width: 30em){body.immersive-main-media .immersive-header-wrapper{margin-left:-20px}}@media (min-width: 46.25em){body.immersive-main-media .immersive-header-wrapper{margin-left:calc((100vw – 740px)/-2 – 21px)}}@media (min-width: 61.25em){body.immersive-main-media .immersive-header-wrapper{margin-left:calc((100vw – 980px)/-2 – 21px)}}@media (min-width: 71.25em){body.immersive-main-media .immersive-header-wrapper{margin-left:calc((100vw – 1140px)/-2 – 21px)}}@media (min-width: 81.25em){body.immersive-main-media .immersive-header-wrapper{margin-left:calc((100vw – 1300px)/-2 – 21px)}}body.immersive-main-media .immersive-header-wrapper figure{margin:0}body.immersive-main-media .immersive-header-wrapper figure figcaption{display:none}body.immersive-main-media .immersive-header-wrapper figure figure,body.immersive-main-media .immersive-header-wrapper figure picture,body.immersive-main-media .immersive-header-wrapper figure img{height:60vh;width:100%;-o-object-fit:cover;object-fit:cover}@media (min-width: 46.25em){body.immersive-main-media .immersive-header-wrapper figure figure,body.immersive-main-media .immersive-header-wrapper figure picture,body.immersive-main-media .immersive-header-wrapper figure img{height:calc(60vh – 48px)}}body.immersive-main-media .immersive-header-wrapper >div:nth-of-type(2){position:relative;margin-top:-73px;margin-right:20px}@media (min-width: 30em){body.immersive-main-media .immersive-header-wrapper >div:nth-of-type(2){margin-right:0}}@media (min-width: 46.25em){body.immersive-main-media .immersive-header-wrapper >div:nth-of-type(2){margin-left:calc((100vw – 740px)/2)}}@media (min-width: 46.25em) and (max-width: 46.25em){body.immersive-main-media .immersive-header-wrapper >div:nth-of-type(2){margin-left:8px}}@media (min-width: 61.25em){body.immersive-main-media .immersive-header-wrapper >div:nth-of-type(2){margin-left:calc((100vw – 980px)/2)}}@media (min-width: 61.25em) and (max-width: 61.3125em){body.immersive-main-media .immersive-header-wrapper >div:nth-of-type(2){margin-left:8px}}@media (min-width: 71.25em){body.immersive-main-media .immersive-header-wrapper >div:nth-of-type(2){margin-left:calc((100vw – 1140px)/2 + 170px)}}@media (min-width: 71.25em) and (max-width: 71.3125em){body.immersive-main-media .immersive-header-wrapper >div:nth-of-type(2){margin-left:170px}}@media (min-width: 81.25em){body.immersive-main-media .immersive-header-wrapper >div:nth-of-type(2){margin-left:calc((100vw – 1300px)/2 + 250px)}}@media (min-width: 81.25em) and (max-width: 81.3125em){body.immersive-main-media .immersive-header-wrapper >div:nth-of-type(2){margin-left:250px}}body.immersive-main-media .immersive-header-wrapper >div:nth-of-type(2) .article-header,body.immersive-main-media .immersive-header-wrapper >div:nth-of-type(2) [data-gu-name=title]{z-index:100}body.immersive-main-media .immersive-header-wrapper >div:nth-of-type(2) .article-header [data-component=series]+span,body.immersive-main-media .immersive-header-wrapper >div:nth-of-type(2) [data-gu-name=title] [data-component=series]+span{display:none}body.immersive-main-media .immersive-header-wrapper >div:nth-of-type(2) .article-header a,body.immersive-main-media .immersive-header-wrapper >div:nth-of-type(2) [data-gu-name=title] a{display:block;color:#fff;background-color:#bb3b80;padding:2px 10px 3px}@media (min-width: 71.25em){body.immersive-main-media .immersive-header-wrapper >div:nth-of-type(2) .article-header .content__labels div,body.immersive-main-media .immersive-header-wrapper >div:nth-of-type(2) [data-gu-name=title] .content__labels div{flex-direction:row}}body.immersive-main-media .immersive-header-wrapper >div:nth-of-type(2) #headline,body.immersive-main-media .immersive-header-wrapper >div:nth-of-type(2) [data-gu-name=headline],body.immersive-main-media .immersive-header-wrapper >div:nth-of-type(2) .headline{background-color:#121212}body.immersive-main-media .immersive-header-wrapper >div:nth-of-type(2) #headline h1,body.immersive-main-media .immersive-header-wrapper >div:nth-of-type(2) [data-gu-name=headline] h1,body.immersive-main-media .immersive-header-wrapper >div:nth-of-type(2) .headline h1{color:#fff;font-size:40px;padding-left:10px}@media (min-width: 30em){body.immersive-main-media .immersive-header-wrapper >div:nth-of-type(2) #headline h1,body.immersive-main-media .immersive-header-wrapper >div:nth-of-type(2) [data-gu-name=headline] h1,body.immersive-main-media .immersive-header-wrapper >div:nth-of-type(2) .headline h1{padding-left:18px}}@media (min-width: 46.25em){body.immersive-main-media .immersive-header-wrapper >div:nth-of-type(2) #headline h1,body.immersive-main-media .immersive-header-wrapper >div:nth-of-type(2) [data-gu-name=headline] h1,body.immersive-main-media .immersive-header-wrapper >div:nth-of-type(2) .headline h1{padding-left:20px}}@media (min-width: 46.25em) and (max-width: 46.25em){body.immersive-main-media .immersive-header-wrapper >div:nth-of-type(2) #headline h1,body.immersive-main-media .immersive-header-wrapper >div:nth-of-type(2) [data-gu-name=headline] h1,body.immersive-main-media .immersive-header-wrapper >div:nth-of-type(2) .headline h1{padding-left:10px}}@media (min-width: 46.25em){body.immersive-main-media .immersive-header-wrapper >div:nth-of-type(2) #headline h1,body.immersive-main-media .immersive-header-wrapper >div:nth-of-type(2) [data-gu-name=headline] h1,body.immersive-main-media .immersive-header-wrapper >div:nth-of-type(2) .headline h1{padding-left:10px}}body.immersive-main-media #meta .byline a,body.immersive-main-media [data-gu-name=meta] .byline a{color:#bb3b80}body.immersive-main-media #meta .meta__social svg,body.immersive-main-media [data-gu-name=meta] .meta__social svg{fill:#bb3b80}body.immersive-main-media .immersive-main-media .standfirst,body.immersive-main-media .immersive-main-media #standfirst,body.immersive-main-media .immersive-main-media [data-gu-name=standfirst]{padding:2px 0 12px}@media (max-width: 46.24em){body.immersive-main-media .immersive-main-media .standfirst,body.immersive-main-media .immersive-main-media #standfirst,body.immersive-main-media .immersive-main-media [data-gu-name=standfirst]{width:95%}}body.immersive-main-media .immersive-main-media .standfirst .content__standfirst,body.immersive-main-media .immersive-main-media .standfirst p,body.immersive-main-media .immersive-main-media #standfirst .content__standfirst,body.immersive-main-media .immersive-main-media #standfirst p,body.immersive-main-media .immersive-main-media [data-gu-name=standfirst] .content__standfirst,body.immersive-main-media .immersive-main-media [data-gu-name=standfirst] p{margin:0}.ios #article-header .immersive-header-wrapper,.ios #feature-header .immersive-header-wrapper,.android #article-header .immersive-header-wrapper,.android #feature-header .immersive-header-wrapper{margin-left:calc((100vw – 740px)/-2 + 40px);margin:0}.ios #article-header .immersive-header-wrapper figure figure,.ios #article-header .immersive-header-wrapper figure picture,.ios #article-header .immersive-header-wrapper figure img,.ios #feature-header .immersive-header-wrapper figure figure,.ios #feature-header .immersive-header-wrapper figure picture,.ios #feature-header .immersive-header-wrapper figure img,.android #article-header .immersive-header-wrapper figure figure,.android #article-header .immersive-header-wrapper figure picture,.android #article-header .immersive-header-wrapper figure img,.android #feature-header .immersive-header-wrapper figure figure,.android #feature-header .immersive-header-wrapper figure picture,.android #feature-header .immersive-header-wrapper figure img{height:100%}@media (max-width: 41.24em){.ios #article-header .immersive-header-wrapper figure figure,.ios #article-header .immersive-header-wrapper figure picture,.ios #article-header .immersive-header-wrapper figure img,.ios #feature-header .immersive-header-wrapper figure figure,.ios #feature-header .immersive-header-wrapper figure picture,.ios #feature-header .immersive-header-wrapper figure img,.android #article-header .immersive-header-wrapper figure figure,.android #article-header .immersive-header-wrapper figure picture,.android #article-header .immersive-header-wrapper figure img,.android #feature-header .immersive-header-wrapper figure figure,.android #feature-header .immersive-header-wrapper figure picture,.android #feature-header .immersive-header-wrapper figure img{height:60vh}.ios #article-header .immersive-header-wrapper .figure__inner,.ios #feature-header .immersive-header-wrapper .figure__inner,.android #article-header .immersive-header-wrapper .figure__inner,.android #feature-header .immersive-header-wrapper .figure__inner{height:60vh!important}}.ios #article-header .immersive-header-wrapper .article-kicker,.ios #feature-header .immersive-header-wrapper .article-kicker,.android #article-header .immersive-header-wrapper .article-kicker,.android #feature-header .immersive-header-wrapper .article-kicker{padding:0;background-color:transparent}.ios #article-header .immersive-header-wrapper .article-kicker__section,.ios #feature-header .immersive-header-wrapper .article-kicker__section,.android #article-header .immersive-header-wrapper .article-kicker__section,.android #feature-header .immersive-header-wrapper .article-kicker__section{display:block;background-color:#bb3b80;color:#fff;padding:0 10px;text-transform:capitalize}.ios #article-header .immersive-header-wrapper .article-kicker__series,.ios #feature-header .immersive-header-wrapper .article-kicker__series,.android #article-header .immersive-header-wrapper .article-kicker__series,.android #feature-header .immersive-header-wrapper .article-kicker__series{display:none}.ios #article-header .immersive-header-wrapper .headline,.ios #feature-header .immersive-header-wrapper .headline,.android #article-header .immersive-header-wrapper .headline,.android #feature-header .immersive-header-wrapper .headline{color:#fff;padding:10px 10px 24px;line-height:1.15;font-size:40px;font-weight:700}.ios #article-header #main-media figcaption,.ios #feature-header #main-media figcaption,.android #article-header #main-media figcaption,.android #feature-header #main-media figcaption{left:0;padding-bottom:25px}.ios #article-header #main-media figcaption .element-image__caption,.ios #feature-header #main-media figcaption .element-image__caption,.android #article-header #main-media figcaption .element-image__caption,.android #feature-header #main-media figcaption .element-image__caption{display:block}.ios #article-header .immersive-main-media #article-header,.ios #article-header .immersive-main-media #feature-header,.ios #feature-header .immersive-main-media #article-header,.ios #feature-header .immersive-main-media #feature-header,.android #article-header .immersive-main-media #article-header,.android #article-header .immersive-main-media #feature-header,.android #feature-header .immersive-main-media #article-header,.android #feature-header .immersive-main-media #feature-header{margin-left:10px}.ios #article-header .immersive-main-media #article-header .article-kicker,.ios #article-header .immersive-main-media #feature-header .article-kicker,.ios #feature-header .immersive-main-media #article-header .article-kicker,.ios #feature-header .immersive-main-media #feature-header .article-kicker,.android #article-header .immersive-main-media #article-header .article-kicker,.android #article-header .immersive-main-media #feature-header .article-kicker,.android #feature-header .immersive-main-media #article-header .article-kicker,.android #feature-header .immersive-main-media #feature-header .article-kicker{background-color:transparent;padding-left:0}.ios #article-header .immersive-main-media #article-header .article-kicker__series,.ios #article-header .immersive-main-media #feature-header .article-kicker__series,.ios #feature-header .immersive-main-media #article-header .article-kicker__series,.ios #feature-header .immersive-main-media #feature-header .article-kicker__series,.android #article-header .immersive-main-media #article-header .article-kicker__series,.android #article-header .immersive-main-media #feature-header .article-kicker__series,.android #feature-header .immersive-main-media #article-header .article-kicker__series,.android #feature-header .immersive-main-media #feature-header .article-kicker__series{padding:0 10px;background-color:#bb3b80}.ios #article-header .immersive-main-media #article-header .article-kicker__series span,.ios #article-header .immersive-main-media #feature-header .article-kicker__series span,.ios #feature-header .immersive-main-media #article-header .article-kicker__series span,.ios #feature-header .immersive-main-media #feature-header .article-kicker__series span,.android #article-header .immersive-main-media #article-header .article-kicker__series span,.android #article-header .immersive-main-media #feature-header .article-kicker__series span,.android #feature-header .immersive-main-media #article-header .article-kicker__series span,.android #feature-header .immersive-main-media #feature-header .article-kicker__series span{color:#fff;font-size:17px;font-weight:700}.ios #article-header .immersive-main-media #article-header #headline,.ios #article-header .immersive-main-media #article-header [data-gu-name=headline],.ios #article-header .immersive-main-media #article-header .headline,.ios #article-header .immersive-main-media #feature-header #headline,.ios #article-header .immersive-main-media #feature-header [data-gu-name=headline],.ios #article-header .immersive-main-media #feature-header .headline,.ios #feature-header .immersive-main-media #article-header #headline,.ios #feature-header .immersive-main-media #article-header [data-gu-name=headline],.ios #feature-header .immersive-main-media #article-header .headline,.ios #feature-header .immersive-main-media #feature-header #headline,.ios #feature-header .immersive-main-media #feature-header [data-gu-name=headline],.ios #feature-header .immersive-main-media #feature-header .headline,.android #article-header .immersive-main-media #article-header #headline,.android #article-header .immersive-main-media #article-header [data-gu-name=headline],.android #article-header .immersive-main-media #article-header .headline,.android #article-header .immersive-main-media #feature-header #headline,.android #article-header .immersive-main-media #feature-header [data-gu-name=headline],.android #article-header .immersive-main-media #feature-header .headline,.android #feature-header .immersive-main-media #article-header #headline,.android #feature-header .immersive-main-media #article-header [data-gu-name=headline],.android #feature-header .immersive-main-media #article-header .headline,.android #feature-header .immersive-main-media #feature-header #headline,.android #feature-header .immersive-main-media #feature-header [data-gu-name=headline],.android #feature-header .immersive-main-media #feature-header .headline{margin-top:-1px;padding-top:5px;font-size:40px;font-weight:700;color:#fff}.ios #article-header .immersive-main-media #article-header .standfirst,.ios #article-header .immersive-main-media #feature-header .standfirst,.ios #feature-header .immersive-main-media #article-header .standfirst,.ios #feature-header .immersive-main-media #feature-header .standfirst,.android #article-header .immersive-main-media #article-header .standfirst,.android #article-header .immersive-main-media #feature-header .standfirst,.android #feature-header .immersive-main-media #article-header .standfirst,.android #feature-header .immersive-main-media #feature-header .standfirst{margin-left:-10px}.ios #article-header .immersive-main-media #article-header #meta:before,.ios #article-header .immersive-main-media #article-header [data-gu-name=meta]:before,.ios #article-header .immersive-main-media #feature-header #meta:before,.ios #article-header .immersive-main-media #feature-header [data-gu-name=meta]:before,.ios #feature-header .immersive-main-media #article-header #meta:before,.ios #feature-header .immersive-main-media #article-header [data-gu-name=meta]:before,.ios #feature-header .immersive-main-media #feature-header #meta:before,.ios #feature-header .immersive-main-media #feature-header [data-gu-name=meta]:before,.android #article-header .immersive-main-media #article-header #meta:before,.android #article-header .immersive-main-media #article-header [data-gu-name=meta]:before,.android #article-header .immersive-main-media #feature-header #meta:before,.android #article-header .immersive-main-media #feature-header [data-gu-name=meta]:before,.android #feature-header .immersive-main-media #article-header #meta:before,.android #feature-header .immersive-main-media #article-header [data-gu-name=meta]:before,.android #feature-header .immersive-main-media #feature-header #meta:before,.android #feature-header .immersive-main-media #feature-header [data-gu-name=meta]:before{width:100vw}.ios #feature-article-container .element–showcase figcaption,.ios #feature-body .element–showcase figcaption,.android #feature-article-container .element–showcase figcaption,.android #feature-body .element–showcase figcaption{margin-left:10px}.ios #feature-article-container .element–showcase #caption-button,.android #feature-article-container .element–showcase #caption-button{display:flex;padding:5px;justify-content:center;align-items:center;width:28px;height:28px;right:14px}.ios.garnett–pillar-lifestyle.garnett–type-feature .article__body,.android.garnett–pillar-lifestyle.garnett–type-feature .article__body{color:#121212;background-color:#fff}@media (prefers-color-scheme: dark){.ios.garnett–pillar-lifestyle.garnett–type-feature .article__body,.android.garnett–pillar-lifestyle.garnett–type-feature .article__body{background-color:unset;color:#fff}}

    The 2024 election season is well under way.The campaign was marked by a consequential debate between Donald Trump and Joe Biden, followed by weeks of pressure on Biden following his debate performance, culminating in his announcement that he would drop out of the race.As Biden reconsidered his re-election, there was an attempted assassination against Trump, followed by the naming of the Ohio senator JD Vance as the Republican vice-presidential pick.After Biden’s surprise announcement, he backed his vice-president, Kamala Harris, as his choice to replace him on the party’s ticket. Harris quickly secured enough delegates to become the presumptive Democratic pick. She tapped the Minnesota governor, Tim Walz, as her running mate, and both were confirmed as their party’s nominees at the Democratic convention in August.Also in August, Robert F Kennedy Jr, the independent candidate with no shortage of wild stories, suspended his campaign and threw his support behind Trump.Here is the full list of candidates as of 27 August, including some long-shots who hope to challenge the major party candidates in November..gu-candidate-container.svelte-yah0vs.svelte-yah0vs{cursor:pointer;display:flex;flex-wrap:wrap;justify-content:center;width:80px}.gu-candidate-container.true.svelte-yah0vs.svelte-yah0vs{width:70px}.gu-candidate-container.true.svelte-yah0vs img.svelte-yah0vs{filter:grayscale(.8) opacity(.3) contrast(1.8);width:50px}.gu-candidate-container.true.svelte-yah0vs p.svelte-yah0vs{color:#707070}img.svelte-yah0vs.svelte-yah0vs{border-radius:100%;width:100%}p.svelte-yah0vs.svelte-yah0vs{color:#121212;font-family:Guardian Text Sans Web,Helvetica Neue,Helvetica,Arial,Lucida Grande,sans-serif;font-size:14px;margin:0}.gu-party-container.svelte-epvtl6{margin-bottom:20px}.gu-list-of-candidates.svelte-epvtl6{display:flex;flex-wrap:wrap;gap:20px}h3.svelte-epvtl6{font-family:GuardianTextEgyptian,Guardian Text Egyptian Web,Georgia,serif;font-size:17px;line-height:1.4;font-weight:700;margin:10px 0}@font-face{font-family:Guardian Headline Full;src:url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Light.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Light.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Light.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:300;font-style:normal}@font-face{font-family:Guardian Headline Full;src:url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-LightItalic.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-LightItalic.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-LightItalic.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:300;font-style:italic}@font-face{font-family:Guardian Headline Full;src:url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Regular.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Regular.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Regular.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:400;font-style:normal}@font-face{font-family:Guardian Headline Full;src:url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-RegularItalic.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-RegularItalic.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-RegularItalic.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:400;font-style:italic}@font-face{font-family:Guardian Headline Full;src:url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Medium.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Medium.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Medium.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:500;font-style:normal}@font-face{font-family:Guardian Headline Full;src:url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-MediumItalic.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-MediumItalic.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-MediumItalic.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:500;font-style:italic}@font-face{font-family:Guardian Headline Full;src:url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Semibold.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Semibold.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Semibold.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:600;font-style:normal}@font-face{font-family:Guardian Headline Full;src:url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-SemiboldItalic.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-SemiboldItalic.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-SemiboldItalic.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:600;font-style:italic}@font-face{font-family:Guardian Headline Full;src:url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Bold.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Bold.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Bold.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:700;font-style:normal}@font-face{font-family:Guardian Headline Full;src:url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-BoldItalic.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-BoldItalic.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-BoldItalic.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:700;font-style:italic}@font-face{font-family:Guardian Headline Full;src:url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Black.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Black.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Black.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:900;font-style:normal}@font-face{font-family:Guardian Headline Full;src:url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-BlackItalic.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-BlackItalic.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-BlackItalic.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:900;font-style:italic}@font-face{font-family:Guardian Titlepiece;src:url(https://interactive.guim.co.uk/fonts/garnett/GTGuardianTitlepiece-Bold.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://interactive.guim.co.uk/fonts/garnett/GTGuardianTitlepiece-Bold.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://interactive.guim.co.uk/fonts/garnett/GTGuardianTitlepiece-Bold.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:700;font-style:normal}h2{font-family:Guardian Headline,Guardian Egyptian Web,Guardian Headline Full,Georgia,serif;font-weight:400}p{font-family:Guardian Text Egyptian Web,Georgia,serif}button{font-family:Guardian Text Sans Web,Helvetica Neue,Helvetica,Arial,Lucida Grande,sans-serif;display:inline-flex;justify-content:space-between;align-items:center;box-sizing:border-box;border:none;background:#052962;text-decoration:none;white-space:nowrap;font-size:1.0625rem;line-height:1.35;font-weight:700;height:44px;min-height:44px;padding:0 20px 2px;border-radius:44px;color:#fff;cursor:pointer}button:hover{background-color:#234b8a}
    .gu-party-container.svelte-epvtl6{margin-bottom:20px}.gu-list-of-candidates.svelte-epvtl6{display:flex;flex-wrap:wrap;gap:20px}h3.svelte-epvtl6{font-family:GuardianTextEgyptian, “Guardian Text Egyptian Web”, Georgia, serif;font-size:17px;line-height:1.4;font-weight:bold;margin:10px 0}
    Loading…
    The remaining candidatesView image in fullscreenDonald TrumpFormer president of the United States. Running mate: JD VanceDonald Trump accepted the Republican party’s nomination for president for the third consecutive time. At the Republican national convention in Milwaukee, the former president formally accepted the nomination on a night that was supposed to be filled with calls for unity but instead was marked by alarmist language and false claims.Trump announced Vance – once a vocal “never Trumper” – as his pick for the nomination for vice-president at the Republican convention.View image in fullscreenKamala HarrisVice-president of the United States. Running-mate: Tim WalzHarris officially accepted the Democratic party’s presidential nomination at the Democratic convention in August in Chicago, after a whirlwind tour of battleground states alongside her running mate, Walz.Harris’s campaign came after weeks of pressure following Biden’s disastrous June debate, and after Biden announced he would not accept his party’s nomination and endorsed her to replace him on the Democratic ticket.Immediately following Biden’s decision, Harris confirmed her intention to “earn and win this nomination” as a flood of Democrats endorsed her campaign, heading off a competitive race for the Democratic ticket.Harris made her first official campaign stop in Delaware on 22 July and has crisscrosed the country, stopping in swing state after swing state, since.View image in fullscreenJill SteinDoctor and activist. Running mate: Butch WareLeftwing environmentalist Jill Stein formally launched her third presidential bid in an online conversation in November 2023. Stein also stood as the Green party’s candidate in the 2012 and 2016 presidential elections. Her candidacy follows the decision by Cornel West, the party’s original likely nominee, to leave the Green party and run as an independent.View image in fullscreenCornel WestProfessor and progressive activist. Running mate: Melina AbdullahThe progressive activist Cornel West announced in a video posted to Twitter that he was running for president as a member of the People’s party, a third party headed by a former campaign staffer for Bernie Sanders. West is currently a professor of philosophy at Union Theological Seminary and previously worked at Harvard but resigned, saying the school had an “intellectual and spiritual bankruptcy of deep depths”.Dropped outView image in fullscreenJoe BidenPresident of the United States, dropped out 21 July 2024Joe Biden was the presumptive Democratic nominee for the 2024 presidential election, winning all the party’s primary contests. However, following a disastrous debate performance in June against Trump, and weeks of pressure, Biden announced on 21 July that he would not accept the party’s nomination. Biden endorsed Kamala Harris to replace him at the top of the Democratic ticket. Biden served in politics for more than five decades, culminating in his 2020 victory over Donald Trump.Ryan BinkleyBusinessman and pastor, dropped out 27 February 2024Binkley, a Texas businessman, was a long-shot candidate who is also a pastor at Create church. The self-proclaimed far-right fiscal conservative criticized both Democrats and Republicans for not being able to balance the federal budget, and said he would focus on health costs, immigration reform and a national volunteer movement.View image in fullscreenDoug BurgumGovernor of North Dakota, dropped out 4 December 2023Burgum, the governor of North Dakota, announced his campaign in an opinion piece for the Wall Street Journal on 6 June 2023. Viewed as a surprise, long-shot candidate, he touted his experience as a career businessman and leaned on his small-town roots in an announcement video titled Change. As governor, Burgum signed into law a near-total abortion ban, which makes the procedure illegal after six weeks, and only permissible in cases of rape, incest or medical emergency up to that point. He supported Donald Trump for president in 2016 and in 2020.View image in fullscreenChris ChristieFormer governor of New Jersey, dropped out 10 January 2024The former New Jersey governor has emerged as one of the harshest Republican critics of Donald Trump, whom he endorsed for president in 2016 after dropping out of that race. Christie says he broke ties with the former president after the January 6 insurrection at the US Capitol, claiming that he hadn’t spoken to Trump since then. Christie, a lawyer and a lobbyist who served as a US attorney appointed by George W Bush, announced he was running for president a second time on 6 June 2023 in New Hampshire during a town hall.View image in fullscreenRon DeSantisGovernor of Florida, dropped out 21 January 2024Governor Ron DeSantis of Florida was predicted to be the strongest contender for the GOP nomination against Donald Trump, consistently polling second among Republican primary voters. He made his formal announcement on Twitter, during a Spaces event attended by roughly 300,000 users that was riddled with technological glitches, on 24 May 2023. DeSantis, who has served as Florida’s governor since 2019 and handily defeated the Democratic challenger, Charlie Crist, in 2022, previously represented Florida’s sixth congressional district as a member of the US House from 2012 to 2018. As governor, DeSantis has signed a slate of laws banning minors from receiving gender-affirming care and restricting education on sexual orientation and gender identity in schools, and he has become an outspoken critic of the Chinese Communist party.Larry ElderConservative radio host, dropped out 26 October 2023The rightwing political commentator and radio talkshow host announced his run for president on Fox News as a guest on the now-canceled Tucker Carlson Tonight on 20 April 2023. In 2021, Elder joined a list of Republicans seeking to replace Gavin Newsom, the Democratic governor of California, in a failed recall. The Los Angeles resident was an outspoken critic of the state’s mask mandates, calling them “a joke”.View image in fullscreenNikki HaleyFormer ambassador to the United Nations, dropped out 6 March 2024Haley, who got her start in politics as a member of South Carolina’s general assembly, was governor of the state from 2011 to 2017. She ended her second term early to serve as US ambassador to the United Nations under Donald Trump before announcing her resignation in 2018. She became the first Republican to announce a run against Donald Trump, even though she previously said she would not run against him. Haley vowed to “fix” the US immigration system by “stopping illegal immigration” and described herself as pro-life, but said a federal abortion ban was unrealistic. Haley, who is the daughter of Indian immigrants, would have been the first US president of Asian descent, as well as the first woman.Will HurdFormer congressman from Texas, dropped out 10 October 2023Former US Representative Will Hurd, of Texas, entered the crowded primary field as a moderate and critic of Donald Trump. Hurd announced his campaign in an interview on CBS. He followed that with a video posted online in which he called Trump a “lawless, selfish, failed politician” and laid out an agenda to curb “illegal immigration”, inflation, crime and homelessness. Hurd, who worked for nearly a decade in the CIA, served three terms in the House, from 2015 to 2021. He left office as the only Black Republican in the chamber.View image in fullscreenAsa HutchinsonFormer governor of Arkansas, dropped out 16 January 2024Hutchinson is the former governor of Arkansas, a post he held from 2015 to 2023. The relatively unknown politician announced his candidacy in an interview on ABC days after Trump was indicted in a Manhattan court, saying the ex-president should drop out of the race. Hutchinson is a businessman and lawyer who was appointed by Ronald Reagan to serve as a US attorney. He also served a stint in the US House of Representatives, winning a congressional seat in 1996 when he replaced his brother, Tim, who ran for Senate.View image in fullscreenPerry JohnsonBusinessman, dropped out 20 October 2023Johnson is a businessman who ran unsuccessfully for governor of Michigan in 2022 after providing fraudulent nominating signatures for that campaign. Originally from Illinois, Johnson founded dozens of companies, and lives in Michigan with his family. He has billed himself as Donald Trump “without the baggage” and has taken similar policy positions on curbing US debt and cracking down on the FBI.Robert F Kennedy JrLawyer and author, dropped out 23 August 2024Robert F Kennedy Jr, known for his work as an environmental lawyer and his anti-vaccine views, said he was running for president to end the “chronic disease epidemic”. Kennedy, who compared vaccine mandates during the Covid-19 pandemic to “Hitler’s Germany”, has promoted other baseless conspiracy theories such as telecom networks being used to control people. He is the nephew of John F Kennedy, the former Democratic president, who was assassinated in office, and is the son of 1968 Democratic presidential candidate Robert F Kennedy, who was assassinated on the campaign trail. He suspended his campaign on 23 August and endorsed Trump.View image in fullscreenMike PenceFormer vice-president of the United States, dropped out 28 October 2023Mike Pence officially launched his campaign for president on 7 June 2023, in a rare instance of a former vice-president challenging the president with whom he shared a ticket a few years ago. Pence joined a crowded Republican field in which he has consistently polled third, even before he officially announced his candidacy, though he trails far behind DeSantis and Trump. Pence was angling for a wide base among evangelical Christians and had vowed to ban abortion if he were elected. He denounced the January 6 attack on the US Capitol, and had used it as a talking point against Trump, who turned against him after he publicly refused supporters’ calls to overturn the results of the election.View image in fullscreenDean PhillipsRepresentative from Minnesota, dropped out 6 March 2024Dean Phillips, a three-term Democratic congressman from Minnesota, challenged Biden, saying the next generation should have the opportunity to lead the country. Phillips is the heir to a distilling company and once co-owned a gelato company. He entered public office spurred by fighting back against Trump.Vivek RamaswamyEntrepreneur and author, dropped out 16 January 2024The biotech entrepreneur and political newcomer announced his campaign in a video describing attacks on the “culture of free speech in America” and again on Fox News in an interview with now-fired Tucker Carlson. He is the author of Woke, Inc, a book that lobbies against “ESG” – a framework of corporate governance that encourages companies to consider the environment and social justice issues. Ramaswamy, who was the youngest candidate vying for the Republican nomination, had lobbied in favor of raising the national voting age to 25. Ramaswamy would have been the first president of Asian and Indian descent. He had also vowed to pardon federally indicted Donald Trump.Francis SuarezMayor of Miami, dropped out 29 August 2023Suarez, the mayor of Miami, was the first major Hispanic candidate seeking the Republican party nomination this election cycle. The son of Miami’s first Cuban-born mayor, Suarez had said he would broaden support for Republicans among Latino voters. He was the third candidate from Florida to join the crowded primary field, alongside frontrunners Trump and DeSantis. Suarez, who was first elected in 2017, filed paperwork to run the day after Trump appeared in a Miami court over federal charges and made his formal announcement on Good Morning America the day after that.View image in fullscreenTim ScottSenator from South Carolina, dropped out 13 November 2023In May, Scott became the second politician from South Carolina to run for the Republican nomination. He has served as a senator from South Carolina since 2013, when he was appointed by Republican challenger Nikki Haley to fill a vacancy. Scott, who is one of three Black members of the Senate and is the only Black Republican senator, said in his announcement speech that “America is not a racist country”. Scott joined fellow Republicans in opposing the Respect for Marriage Act in 2022. Scott served as a member of the House from 2011 to 2013 and before that spent stints in South Carolina’s general assembly and Charleston’s county council. During his 2010 campaign for the House of Representatives, Scott told Newsweek that homosexuality was a morally wrong choice.View image in fullscreenMarianne WilliamsonAuthorFailed 2020 presidential candidate Marianne Williamson, who also unsuccessfully ran for a seat in the US House of Representatives in 2014, became the first Democratic candidate to announce she is running for president as a challenge to Joe Biden. Williamson, an author of self-help books, launched her long-shot bid with campaign promises to address climate change and student loan debt. She previously worked as “spiritual leader” of a Michigan Unity church. She originally ended her campaign on 7 February 2024 but announced on 28 February she was “un-suspending”. More

    More stories

    • 125 Shares169 Views

      in US Politics

      Republican ‘veepstakes’ heats up as contenders court Trump at court

      by

      Two senators, JD Vance of Ohio and Tim Scott of South Carolina, have shot to the front of the US media’s beloved “veepstakes”, the reporting, betting and outright speculation about who Donald Trump will pick as his running mate against Joe Biden and Kamala Harris in the presidential election in November.But one report from Capitol Hill quoted a source as saying that Marco Rubio, the Florida Republican senator who ran against Trump in 2016, was still an “ace in the hole” for one adviser particularly close to Trump, “if Scott gets taken out on the runway”.That might have been a pointed choice of words, given reports that Trump’s plane clipped another at a Florida airport last Sunday.Vance, meanwhile, might have stolen a march on Scott by flying to New York to attend Trump’s hush-money trial on Monday.Emerging from court in Manhattan, Vance slammed the case against Trump, which frames payments to the adult film star Stormy Daniels around the 2016 campaign as a form of election subversion, and concerns 34 of the 88 criminal charges Trump must face as he attempts to return to power.Vance was not the first Trump-supporting Republican to show up in New York but he did grab headlines by doing so.The next day, the House speaker, Mike Johnson, grabbed more when he and three VP hopefuls – North Dakota governor Doug Burgum, Florida congressman Byron Donalds and businessman Vivek Ramaswamy – followed Vance to the court. All four attacked prosecutors and the judge in virulent terms Trump cannot employ, given a gag order.One reporter said Trump may have been editing surrogates’ remarks in court.Other observers commented on Burgum, Donalds and Ramaswamy’s decision to wear blue suits and red ties, thereby following Trump’s favourite dress code and earning, from the conservative professor Jack Pitney, a Tarantino-esque nickname: “Reservoir Lapdogs”.View image in fullscreenVance wore the uniform for court on Tuesday. Scott has worn it on the campaign trail, where he challenged Trump for the Republican nomination but dropped out early, telling the ex-president: “I just love you.”According to a detailed report by the Daily Beast, Scott has now acquired a “powerful ally” when it comes to securing the VP slot: Kellyanne Conway, the longtime Republican strategist who managed Trump’s winning campaign in 2016 and was a senior White House aide.Citing three sources, the Beast said Conway was “game” to push Scott with Trump, causing Scott to “place his hopes in Conway’s hands”. The two were recently seen dining in Washington, the Beast said, and were working on a fundraising event.Citing “multiple Trumpworld sources”, the Beast said Conway had “privately encouraged Trump to partner with Scott, believing the two-term senator” – the only Black Senate Republican – “is the best of the options in front of the former president”.The Beast also pointed to a New York Times column from February, in which Conway said Trump should pick a running mate of colour – but included Rubio in that bracket.Rubio and Trump both live in Florida, raising questions about whether they are allowed, under the constitution, to run on the same ticket.But the Beast quoted another anonymous Trump source as saying: “Here’s the thing about Kellyanne: people dismiss her for a variety of reasons; she’s not particularly smart and doesn’t really come up with a lot of good ideas, she’s always chasing money and that’s what guides her decision making.“But she does have Trump figured out like no one else. If anyone can convince him to make a mistake – and later assign blame to someone else – it’s Kellyanne.”skip past newsletter promotionafter newsletter promotionConway said: “President Trump seeks the counsel of many men and women on the VP pick, but he and he alone will decide.”Scott did not comment. Nor did the Trump campaign.On Tuesday, according to NBC News, Trump commented on another possible VP pick once seen as a strong contender but deemed to have slipped in the running.“What a week!” Trump reportedly told an audience including Kristi Noem, the governor of South Dakota, at a Manhattan fundraiser also attended by Scott, Rubio and Burgum.“The dog, the dog!” Trump said.Last month, the Guardian first reported Noem’s decision to include in a memoir her story of using a shotgun to kill both Cricket, a 14-month-old wirehaired pointer she deemed “untrainable”, and an unnamed male goat.Noem has defended the story, which she said took place 20 years ago, as evidence of her willingness to do unpleasant things in life as well as politics. She has also endorsed her apparent threat, also in her book, to kill Joe Biden’s dog, which has a history of biting.But enduring shock and revulsion – and controversy over Noem’s claim to have met and “stared down” the North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, a story revealed to be untrue – are widely seen to have killed her chances of being Trump’s VP.“I’m really curious about the dog,” Trump reportedly said in New York, before “riffing on Cricket’s story” in a “bemused” rather than critical manner.Of Noem, Trump said: “She’s been there for us for a long time. She’s loyal, she’s great.” More

    • 163 Shares99 Views

      in US Politics

      Mike Johnson skips vital US House session to support Trump in New York

      by

      The US House was in session on Tuesday with vital business to complete but its speaker, Mike Johnson, was 200 miles north, attending another day in the criminal trial of Donald Trump, the former president and presumptive Republican presidential nominee charged over hush-money payments to an adult film star who claimed an affair.“President Trump is innocent of these charges,” Johnson said outside court in Manhattan, where Trump faces the first 34 of 88 criminal counts.Michael Cohen, who as Trump’s lawyer and fixer made the payments to Stormy Daniels, was on the witness stand.Trump has used his trial as a loyalty test for supporters and vice-presidential hopefuls, both at the courthouse and on social media and TV. On Tuesday, Johnson was joined by the governor of North Dakota, Doug Burgum, the Florida representatives Byron Donalds and Cory Mills, and Vivek Ramaswamy, a biotech entrepreneur who ran for the Republican presidential nomination.Before proceedings began, as Johnson and other supporters stood behind him, Trump spoke to reporters.“I do have a lot of surrogates and they are speaking very beautifully,” he said. “They come from all over Washington, and they’re highly respected and they think this is the biggest scam they’ve ever seen.”Regarding such surrogates’ ability to comment on the trial unencumbered by a gag order over which Trump has been fined and threatened with incarceration, Trump told reporters: “You ask me questions that I’m not allowed to answer.”Complaining about the courtroom, Trump said: “I’ve been here for nearly four weeks in the ice box.”The charges against Trump cast the hush-money payments, made around the 2016 election, as a form of election subversion.Trump also faces four federal and 10 Georgia state charges arising from his attempts to overturn his 2020 defeat by Joe Biden, and 40 federal charges concerning his retention of classified information.He has also been hit with multimillion-dollar civil penalties, over his business practices and a defamation suit arising from a rape allegation a judge called “substantially true”.Nonetheless, the devoutly Christian (and porn-monitoring) Johnson rushed to Trump’s side as Trump’s affair with Daniels, the star of films including Dirty Deeds and Right Amount of Wrong, was once more examined in court.One of Johnson’s former Republican colleagues, the anti-Trump conservative Liz Cheney, jibed: “Have to admit I’m surprised that Speaker Johnson wants to be in the ‘I cheated on my wife with a porn star’ club. I guess he’s not that concerned with teaching morality to our young people after all.”Back on Capitol Hill, the House was due to consider final passage of the Federal Aviation Authority Reauthorization Act. House Democrats were also set to face a series of messaging bills, proposed legislation designed not to pass but to ensnare the other party in difficult political choices.“Otherwise,” Politico reported, “Speaker Mike Johnson is ready to move squarely into campaign mode.”View image in fullscreenIn Manhattan, Johnson – the only member of Trump’s cheer squad not to wear a distinctly Trumpian red tie – spoke to reporters. He said: “President Trump is innocent of these charges.“It’s impossible for anybody to deny, that looks at this objectively, that the judicial system in our country has been weaponised against President Trump. The system is using all the tools at its disposal right now to punish one president to provide cover for another.“These are politically motivated trials and they are a disgrace. It is election interference, and they show how desperate the opposition that President Trump is, how desperate they truly are.”Johnson said he was making the appearance “on my own, to support President Trump, because I am one of hundreds of millions of people and one citizen who is deeply concerned about this”.skip past newsletter promotionafter newsletter promotionJohnson and his fellow visitors were not the first. On Monday the Ohio senator JD Vance gave his impressions of proceedings.Vance posted: “Michael Cohen admitting he secretly recorded his employer. Just totally normal conduct, right? The best part is he said he did it only once and only for Trump’s benefit. A stand-up guy!”Vance also called the trial “election interference”, because the gag order constrained Trump’s speech, representing “a violation of the constitution and an insult to the American people”.Before court on Tuesday, Ramaswamy claimed a “sham trial” and a “politically motivated assault on the leading candidate for US president, greenlit by his political opponent, Joe Biden, and carried out at the highest levels of the White House and Department of Justice”.Ramaswamy also attacked the Manhattan district attorney, Alvin Bragg; the prosecutor Matthew Colangelo; and the judge, Juan Merchan.“The American people will deliver the ultimate verdict in November,” Ramaswamy said. “Say NO to the weaponisation of justice.”Other surrogates also complained. Donalds, who as a young man had a marijuana charge dismissed and a bribery charge expunged, said proceedings against Trump represented “a tragedy for the American justice system”.For Johnson, staying close to Trump has paid off, particularly as the speaker has overseen passage of government funding and military aid to Ukraine, neither favoured by Trump and his supporters on the far right of a far-right Republican party.Last week, with support from Democrats, Johnson defeated an attempt to remove him mounted by Marjorie Taylor Greene, the Georgia extremist who has touted herself as a Trump running mate.In a statement on Tuesday, Alex Floyd, rapid response director for the Democratic National Committee, mocked Trump’s need for “emotional support” from Johnson and others, and took a shot at the speaker for absenting himself from the House.“Donald Trump is convening the saddest posse of Maga loyalists … desperate for emotional support and political cover as he spends another week tending to his personal affairs rather than talking to actual voters,” Floyd said.“Trump’s pathetic band … seemingly have nothing better to do than echo Trump’s lies and nod approvingly in the background – because they certainly aren’t doing their day jobs of serving their constituents or running a functional political operation.” More

    • 150 Shares129 Views

      in US Politics

      Major poll gives Trump 16-point lead in New Hampshire days before primary

      by

      Donald Trump continues to dominate the race for the Republican presidential nomination, enjoying a 16-point lead in New Hampshire days before it becomes the second state to vote, according to a major new poll.Suffolk University, the Boston Globe and NBC found the former president at 50% support in New Hampshire, to 34% for the former South Carolina governor Nikki Haley. Ron DeSantis, the hard-right governor of Florida, who edged out Haley for second in Iowa this week, was a distant third at 5%.In New Hampshire, undeclared voters can take part in state or presidential primaries. Many observers think such voters will have an outsized effect on the Republican primary this year, given the lack of real Democratic contest because Joe Biden is president.In the new poll, Trump dominated among registered Republicans and voters who called themselves conservatives. Haley led among moderates and independents.David Paleologos, director of the Suffolk University Political Research Center in Boston, told the Globe: “Haley’s had a tough week: underperforming in Iowa, trying to answer Trump’s attacks on her positions on social security and immigration, and the recent [Vivek] Ramaswamy endorsement of Trump helping him with younger GOP voters.”Ramaswamy, a brash biotech entrepreneur with whom Haley frequently clashed in debates, dropped out after finishing fourth in Iowa.For Haley, Paleologos said, there was still time “to at least close the gap with undecided voters or even with some Trump voters, and pull Trump below 50”.Other recent polls have shown Haley closing the gap in New Hampshire. On Wednesday, the American Research Group had Haley and Trump tied at 40% each.Not all polls are created equal. The polling analysis site FiveThirtyEight.com gives the American Research Group a C+ rating. Suffolk University gets an A-.After New Hampshire, the next state to vote will be Haley’s own. The FiveThirtyEight average for South Carolina puts Trump at 55%, Haley at 25% and DeSantis at 12%. Nationally, the site puts Trump at 63%, and Haley and DeSantis both 41 points behind.With Trump displaying such dominance despite facing unprecedented legal jeopardy – 91 criminal charges, various civil suits and attempts to keep him off the ballot for inciting an insurrection – most observers think Haley must win in New Hampshire if the primary is to present anything like a meaningful contest.Seeking to present a straight choice between her and Trump, Haley said she would not take part in New Hampshire debates planned for Thursday (to be hosted by ABC) and Sunday (CNN). As Trump has skipped all debates so far, that left DeSantis the only contender willing to appear.Both debates were scrapped. CNN said: “We will continue to pursue other opportunities as the campaign season progresses through 2024, including candidate town halls this week with Ron DeSantis and Nikki Haley.”Haley told CNN that Trump was “who I’m running against, that’s who I want. At the end of the day, he’s the frontrunner … There is nobody else I need to debate.”But on Wednesday Trump was more than 250 miles south of New Hampshire, in court in New York City in a defamation suit brought by the writer E Jean Carroll, whose claim that Trump raped her has already been deemed “substantially true” by the judge.skip past newsletter promotionafter newsletter promotionClaiming Haley was “terrified of getting smoked” on the debate stage, the DeSantis campaign posted Iowa remarks in which Haley said of Trump: “You can’t have an election and not appear on a debate stage in front of the people who are gonna be voting for you. That’s an arrogant approach to think you don’t have to do that.”Haley and DeSantis were campaigning in New Hampshire on Tuesday but DeSantis was reportedly preparing to switch focus to South Carolina. Once a fundraising juggernaut, the DeSantis campaign has seen donations fall in line with polling results.“It’s a pretty sober conversation in terms of how much more the campaign can raise in this environment,” an unnamed source told the Washington Post. Elsewhere, the DeSantis-supporting Super Pac Never Back Down began laying off staff.DeSantis sought to sound a warning to voters, telling CNN that should Trump be the Republican nominee, the presidential election “will revolve around all these legal issues, his trials, perhaps convictions … and about things like January 6” – the deadly attack on Congress Trump incited as he attempted to overturn his 2020 defeat.Republicans, DeSantis said, would “lose if voters are making a decision based on that. We don’t want it to be a referendum on those issues.”Many agree. Digesting the result in Iowa, JB Pritzker, the Democratic governor of Illinois and a Biden surrogate, told MSNBC: “Almost half of the base of the Republican party showing up for this caucus voted against Donald Trump.“Think about that. I think that is telling. It tells you the weakness of Donald Trump and also the opportunity for Democrats because in the end … if the base doesn’t turn out for Donald Trump in the general election enthusiastically and Democrats turn out [their] base, this is all about independents – and independents don’t like Donald Trump.” More

    • 175 Shares189 Views

      in Elections

      Trump wins in Iowa as Republican contest kicks off 2024 presidential race – video

      by

      Donald Trump won the US’s first election contest of 2024, easily fending off a field of Republicans who failed to gain traction against the former US president. The result for Trump was called quickly, while the battle for second place took much longer, with Ron DeSantis edging out Nikki Haley in an upset. Vivek Ramaswamy led the lesser-known pack of contenders, before he dropped out of the Republican nomination race and endorsed Trump More

    • 150 Shares159 Views

      in US Politics

      Vivek Ramaswamy drops out of race for 2024 US Republican presidential nomination

      by

      Vivek Ramaswamy, the youthful entrepreneur who briefly threatened to disrupt the Republican primaries, has suspended his campaign for president, his team said on Monday after disappointing results in the Iowa caucuses.“As of this moment we are going to suspend this presidential campaign”, Ramaswamy said. “There’s no path for me to be the next president absent things that we don’t want to see happen in this country.”Ramaswamy’s withdrawal from the race comes after the 38-year-old failed to build on a strong start to his campaign in a state where he spent significant money and time hoping to gain traction.Virtually unknown before he announced his run for president, Ramaswamy rose to third place in national polls over the summer, amid a slew of appearances on cable news.His popularity, including in the early voting states of Iowa and New Hampshire declined since then, as Donald Trump maintained his convincing lead, and voters gravitated toward candidates with more political experience.Addressing supporters in Iowa on Monday evening, Ramaswamy endorsed Trump. “As I’ve said since the beginning, there are two America first candidates in this race and I called Donald Trump to tell him that.”“I congratulated him on his victory and now going forward he will have my full endorsement for the presidency, and I think we’re gonna do the right thing for this country.”Ramaswamy is scheduled to appear at a Trump campaign event in New Hampshire on Tuesday.Ramaswamy, who made millions of dollars in a career in the biotech industry, became one of the most visible candidates through media appearances and a relentless engagement in culture wars.As the youngest person running for the Republican nomination, and as a son of Indian immigrants, he stood out in a field traditionally populated by older white men. In spite of being the only millennial in the GOP race, he often sought to present himself even further to the right than some of his older Republican rivals.Over the course of his campaign Ramaswamy claimed that the “climate change agenda” was a “hoax”, and said he would increase fossil fuel production, while he also supported a six-week, state-mandated ban on abortion.He was a hardliner on immigration, and said he would “universally” deport all undocumented immigrants – of whom there are believed to be 10 million living in the US – while promising to admit “darn close to zero” refugees.skip past newsletter promotionafter newsletter promotionHe also suggested sending the US military into Mexico to tackle drug cartels, and said that as president he would cut aid to Ukraine and encourage the country to cede much of east Ukraine to Russia.During his campaign, Ramaswamy became increasingly critical of the Republican party as he sought to stress the differences between himself and candidates who had a longer association with the GOP.“We’ve become a party of losers at the end of the day,” Ramaswamy said during the third Republican primary debate in November.He blamed Ronna McDaniel, the chair of the GOP, for the party losing, or underperforming, in elections since 2017.Yet throughout his campaign, Ramaswamy was far less inclined to criticize Trump, who has been the de facto head of the Republican party across those electoral defeats.Ramaswamy declared that Trump was the best president of the 21st century, and pledged to pardon him if he were elected. More

    • 113 Shares119 Views

      in US Politics

      Iowa caucuses 2024: who are the Republican presidential candidates?

      by

      div#maincontent:focus{box-shadow:none!important}@media (min-width: 71.25em){.content__main-column–interactive{margin-left:160px}}@media (min-width: 81.25em){.content__main-column–interactive{margin-left:240px}}.content__main-column–interactive:before{position:absolute;top:0;height:calc(100% + 15px);min-height:100px;content:””}@media (min-width: 71.25em){.content__main-column–interactive:before{border-left:1px solid #dcdcdc;z-index:-1;left:-10px}}@media (min-width: 81.25em){.content__main-column–interactive:before{border-left:1px solid #dcdcdc;left:-11px}}.content__main-column–interactive .element-atom{max-width:620px}@media (max-width: 46.24em){.content__main-column–interactive .element-atom{max-width:100%}}.content__main-column–interactive .element-showcase{margin-left:0}@media (min-width: 46.25em){.content__main-column–interactive .element-showcase{max-width:620px}}@media (min-width: 71.25em){.content__main-column–interactive .element-showcase{max-width:860px}}.content__main-column–interactive .element-immersive{max-width:1100px}@media (max-width: 46.24em){.content__main-column–interactive .element-immersive{width:100vw;position:relative;left:50%;right:50%;margin-left:-50vw!important;margin-right:-50vw!important}}@media (min-width: 46.25em) and (max-width: 71.24em){.content__main-column–interactive .element-immersive{margin-left:-20px;width:calc(100% + 60px)}}@media (min-width: 81.25em){.content__main-column–interactive .element-immersive{max-width:1260px}}.content__main-column–interactive .element-atom{margin-top:0;margin-bottom:0;padding-bottom:12px;padding-top:12px}.content__main-column–interactive p{color:#121212;max-width:620px}p+.element-atom{padding-top:0;padding-bottom:0;margin-top:12px;margin-bottom:12px}.gv-wrapper,.gv-delegate-tracker-wrappe,.gv-configurable-wrapper{font-size:16px;line-height:24px;font-family:Guardian Text Egyptian Web,Georgia,serif}.gv-wrapper .gv-item-header,.gv-delegate-tracker-wrappe .gv-item-header,.gv-configurable-wrapper .gv-item-header{font-size:16px;line-height:20px;font-family:Guardian Headline,Guardian Egyptian Web,Guardian Headline Full,Georgia,serif;font-weight:400;font-weight:600;font-size:20px;line-height:24px}.gv-wrapper .gv-item-subhead,.gv-delegate-tracker-wrappe .gv-item-subhead,.gv-configurable-wrapper .gv-item-subhead{font-size:13px;line-height:18px;font-family:Guardian Text Sans Web,Helvetica Neue,Helvetica,Arial,Lucida Grande,sans-serif;font-size:14px;line-height:16px;margin-bottom:3px;margin-top:3px}.gv-wrapper .gv-item-header-wrapper,.gv-delegate-tracker-wrappe .gv-item-header-wrapper,.gv-configurable-wrapper .gv-item-header-wrapper{margin-bottom:12px}.gv-wrapper .gv-item,.gv-delegate-tracker-wrappe .gv-item,.gv-configurable-wrapper .gv-item{margin-bottom:20px}@keyframes live-pulse{0%{opacity:1}50%{opacity:.5}to{opacity:1}}.gv-wrapper .elex-update__dot,.gv-delegate-tracker-wrappe .elex-update__dot,.gv-configurable-wrapper .elex-update__dot{display:inline-block;min-width:11px;min-height:11px;background:#c70000;margin-right:5px;transform:translateY(.5px);border-radius:20px;animation:1.2s linear 0s live-pulse infinite}.gv-wrapper .gv-count-in-progress[data-progressing=false],.gv-delegate-tracker-wrappe .gv-count-in-progress[data-progressing=false],.gv-configurable-wrapper .gv-count-in-progress[data-progressing=false]{display:none}.gv-wrapper .gv-finish-line,.gv-delegate-tracker-wrappe .gv-finish-line,.gv-configurable-wrapper .gv-finish-line{position:absolute;top:80px;right:10%;height:60%;background-color:#000;width:1px;z-index:1}.gv-wrapper .gv-finish-line-message,.gv-delegate-tracker-wrappe .gv-finish-line-message,.gv-configurable-wrapper .gv-finish-line-message{position:relative;left:80%}.gv-state-results .gv-candidate,.gv-delegate-tracker-wrapper .gv-candidate,.gv-configurable-wrapper .gv-candidate,.gv-state-result .gv-candidate{margin-bottom:6px;width:100%}.gv-state-results .gv-candidate-mug,.gv-delegate-tracker-wrapper .gv-candidate-mug,.gv-configurable-wrapper .gv-candidate-mug,.gv-state-result .gv-candidate-mug{border-radius:50%;height:60px;width:60px;margin-right:12px}.gv-state-results .gv-candidate-mug[data-party=GOP],.gv-state-results .gv-candidate-mug[data-party=gop],.gv-delegate-tracker-wrapper .gv-candidate-mug[data-party=GOP],.gv-delegate-tracker-wrapper .gv-candidate-mug[data-party=gop],.gv-configurable-wrapper .gv-candidate-mug[data-party=GOP],.gv-configurable-wrapper .gv-candidate-mug[data-party=gop],.gv-state-result .gv-candidate-mug[data-party=GOP],.gv-state-result .gv-candidate-mug[data-party=gop]{background-color:#880105}.gv-state-results .gv-candidate-mug[data-party=Dem],.gv-state-results .gv-candidate-mug[data-party=dem],.gv-delegate-tracker-wrapper .gv-candidate-mug[data-party=Dem],.gv-delegate-tracker-wrapper .gv-candidate-mug[data-party=dem],.gv-configurable-wrapper .gv-candidate-mug[data-party=Dem],.gv-configurable-wrapper .gv-candidate-mug[data-party=dem],.gv-state-result .gv-candidate-mug[data-party=Dem],.gv-state-result .gv-candidate-mug[data-party=dem]{background-color:#00529b}.gv-state-results .gv-candidate-mug img,.gv-delegate-tracker-wrapper .gv-candidate-mug img,.gv-configurable-wrapper .gv-candidate-mug img,.gv-state-result .gv-candidate-mug img{border-radius:50%;height:60px;width:60px}.gv-state-results .gv-candidate-cell,.gv-delegate-tracker-wrapper .gv-candidate-cell,.gv-configurable-wrapper .gv-candidate-cell,.gv-state-result .gv-candidate-cell{display:inline-flex;flex-direction:column;vertical-align:top;height:60px}.gv-state-results .gv-candidate-right-cell,.gv-delegate-tracker-wrapper .gv-candidate-right-cell,.gv-configurable-wrapper .gv-candidate-right-cell,.gv-state-result .gv-candidate-right-cell{width:calc(100% – 92px)}.gv-state-results .gv-candidate-bar,.gv-delegate-tracker-wrapper .gv-candidate-bar,.gv-configurable-wrapper .gv-candidate-bar,.gv-state-result .gv-candidate-bar{min-height:20px;display:flex;flex-direction:row;flex-grow:1}.gv-state-results .gv-candidate-bar[data-party=GOP],.gv-state-results .gv-candidate-bar[data-party=gop],.gv-delegate-tracker-wrapper .gv-candidate-bar[data-party=GOP],.gv-delegate-tracker-wrapper .gv-candidate-bar[data-party=gop],.gv-configurable-wrapper .gv-candidate-bar[data-party=GOP],.gv-configurable-wrapper .gv-candidate-bar[data-party=gop],.gv-state-result .gv-candidate-bar[data-party=GOP],.gv-state-result .gv-candidate-bar[data-party=gop]{background-color:#880105}.gv-state-results .gv-candidate-bar[data-party=Dem],.gv-state-results .gv-candidate-bar[data-party=dem],.gv-delegate-tracker-wrapper .gv-candidate-bar[data-party=Dem],.gv-delegate-tracker-wrapper .gv-candidate-bar[data-party=dem],.gv-configurable-wrapper .gv-candidate-bar[data-party=Dem],.gv-configurable-wrapper .gv-candidate-bar[data-party=dem],.gv-state-result .gv-candidate-bar[data-party=Dem],.gv-state-result .gv-candidate-bar[data-party=dem]{background-color:#00529b}.gv-state-results .gv-candidate-name,.gv-state-results .gv-vote-share,.gv-delegate-tracker-wrapper .gv-candidate-name,.gv-delegate-tracker-wrapper .gv-vote-share,.gv-configurable-wrapper .gv-candidate-name,.gv-configurable-wrapper .gv-vote-share,.gv-state-result .gv-candidate-name,.gv-state-result .gv-vote-share{font-size:14px;line-height:18px;font-family:Guardian Headline,Guardian Egyptian Web,Guardian Headline Full,Georgia,serif;font-weight:400;font-size:16px;line-height:20px;margin-bottom:0;color:#000;font-variant-numeric:lining-nums;font-feature-settings:”lnum”}.gv-state-results .gv-vote-share,.gv-delegate-tracker-wrapper .gv-vote-share,.gv-configurable-wrapper .gv-vote-share,.gv-state-result .gv-vote-share{font-size:40px;line-height:44px;font-family:Guardian Titlepiece,Guardian Headline Full,Guardian Headline,Guardian Egyptian Web,Georgia,serif;font-weight:700;font-family:Guardian Headline Numeric;font-size:16px;line-height:20px;font-variant-numeric:lining-nums;font-feature-settings:”lnum”}.gv-state-results .gv-vote-count,.gv-delegate-tracker-wrapper .gv-vote-count,.gv-configurable-wrapper .gv-vote-count,.gv-state-result .gv-vote-count{font-size:12px;line-height:16px;font-family:Guardian Text Sans Web,Helvetica Neue,Helvetica,Arial,Lucida Grande,sans-serif}.gv-state-results .gv-delegate-count,.gv-delegate-tracker-wrapper .gv-delegate-count,.gv-configurable-wrapper .gv-delegate-count,.gv-state-result .gv-delegate-count{font-weight:700}.gv-state-results .gv-candidate-details,.gv-delegate-tracker-wrapper .gv-candidate-details,.gv-configurable-wrapper .gv-candidate-details,.gv-state-result .gv-candidate-details{margin-top:0;display:flex;vertical-align:top;margin-bottom:2px;color:#707070}@font-face{font-family:Guardian Headline Full;src:url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Light.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Light.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Light.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:300;font-style:normal}@font-face{font-family:Guardian Headline Full;src:url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-LightItalic.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-LightItalic.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-LightItalic.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:300;font-style:italic}@font-face{font-family:Guardian Headline Full;src:url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Regular.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Regular.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Regular.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:400;font-style:normal}@font-face{font-family:Guardian Headline Full;src:url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-RegularItalic.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-RegularItalic.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-RegularItalic.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:400;font-style:italic}@font-face{font-family:Guardian Headline Full;src:url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Medium.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Medium.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Medium.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:500;font-style:normal}@font-face{font-family:Guardian Headline Full;src:url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-MediumItalic.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-MediumItalic.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-MediumItalic.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:500;font-style:italic}@font-face{font-family:Guardian Headline Full;src:url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Semibold.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Semibold.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Semibold.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:600;font-style:normal}@font-face{font-family:Guardian Headline Full;src:url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-SemiboldItalic.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-SemiboldItalic.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-SemiboldItalic.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:600;font-style:italic}@font-face{font-family:Guardian Headline Full;src:url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Bold.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Bold.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Bold.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:700;font-style:normal}@font-face{font-family:Guardian Headline Full;src:url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-BoldItalic.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-BoldItalic.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-BoldItalic.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:700;font-style:italic}@font-face{font-family:Guardian Headline Full;src:url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Black.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Black.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Black.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:900;font-style:normal}@font-face{font-family:Guardian Headline Full;src:url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-BlackItalic.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-BlackItalic.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-BlackItalic.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:900;font-style:italic}@font-face{font-family:Guardian Titlepiece;src:url(https://interactive.guim.co.uk/fonts/garnett/GTGuardianTitlepiece-Bold.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://interactive.guim.co.uk/fonts/garnett/GTGuardianTitlepiece-Bold.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://interactive.guim.co.uk/fonts/garnett/GTGuardianTitlepiece-Bold.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:700;font-style:normal}@font-face{font-family:Guardian Headline Numeric;src:url(https://interactive.guim.co.uk/fonts/garnett/GHGuardianHeadline-Bold.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://interactive.guim.co.uk/fonts/garnett/GHGuardianHeadline-Bold.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://interactive.guim.co.uk/fonts/garnett/GHGuardianHeadline-Bold.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:700;font-style:normal}
      The Republican race for the 2024 presidential nomination began with a surprisingly large field but has rapidly winnowed down. Now voters are flocking to the Iowa caucuses – the first contest in the process.In a US election, Republican and Democrats hold contests in each state to decide who their nominee will be in the presidential election in November. The winner in each state gets delegates who vote at the party conventions in the summer to choose their nominee. The state elections are usually called primaries with a simple vote, but in some states the election follows a more complex, meeting-based format known as a caucus.So far the 2024 Republican race has been heavily dominated by former US president Donald Trump, who has had a strong poll lead in Iowa itself, as well as in national surveys. Many experts expect a rerun of the 2020 race with Trump facing off against Democratic incumbent Joe Biden for the White House.The trailing pack of Republican candidates has seen numerous highly regarded figures – such as former vice-president Mike Pence and South Carolina senator Tim Scott – drop out. Those remaining have now split into two distinct groups of those who are (just about) potential rivals to Trump and those who are also-rans.Here are the key candidates dueling it out in Iowa:The favoriteDonald TrumpThe former US president’s campaign to retake the White House and once again grab his party’s nomination got off to a slow start that was widely mocked. But his campaign has steadily moved into a position of dominance and never looked likely to be dislodged from that.Trump declined to attend any of the Republican debates, has used his court appearances and many legal woes as a rallying cry to mobilize his base, and has run a surprisingly well-organized campaign. His extremist rhetoric, especially around his plans for a second term and the targeting of his political enemies, has sparked widespread fears over the threat to American democracy that his candidacy represents.His political style during the campaign has not shifted from his previous runs in 2016 and 2020 and, if anything, has become more extreme. Many see this as a result of his political and legal fates becoming entwined with a return to the Oval Office being seen as Trump’s best chance of nixing his legal problems.The potential rivalsNikki HaleyThe former South Carolina governor and ex-US ambassador to the United Nations under Trump has mostly hewed a fine line between being an alternative to Trump, while not outraging his base with too much direct criticism.That has paid off as Haley has shone in debates and worked hard on the campaign trail and risen in the polls to give her a shot at coming second in Iowa and causing an upset in New Hampshire – where she is polling strongly. However, that prominence has now earned Trump’s ire and the two campaigns are openly hurling insults at each other.Ron DeSantisThe rightwing Florida governor was widely seen as the most likely rival to Trump but DeSantis has proved a disaster as a campaigner on the national stage. Positioning himself as an extreme culture warrior, DeSantis has run a campaign of hardcore rightwing politics but he himself has proved a serious turnoff to voters.He has failed to use the debate stage to break through and been subject to a brutal months-long assault from Trump and his surrogates as his stiff campaign trail style damaged his standings. The result has been a prolonged tanking in the polls and Haley has largely overtaken him as the main “non-Trump” candidate.The also-ransVivek RamaswamyThe entrepreneur and extreme Trump fan had a moment in the sun during the early debates where he briefly seemed to be emerging as someone even Trumpier than Trump – but with a younger, more dynamic candidacy. That did not last long though as his poll numbers never caught on and his extremist comments generated endless negative press. He failed to qualify for the final debate.Asa HutchinsonFormer Arkansas governor Asa Hutchinson has remained in the race – but few people would really know why. He has not qualified for recent debates and is not expected to make any meaningful impression in Iowa or nationally and frequently dips below 1% in polls. Hutchinson feels like an older school pre-Trump Republican campaigning in a vastly different age from the one where he carved out a career as a traditional conservative.@font-face{font-family:”Guardian Headline Full”;src:url(https://interactive.guim.co.uk/fonts/garnett/GHGuardianHeadline-Light.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://interactive.guim.co.uk/fonts/garnett/GHGuardianHeadline-Light.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://interactive.guim.co.uk/fonts/garnett/GHGuardianHeadline-Light.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:300;font-style:normal}@font-face{font-family:”Guardian Headline Full”;src:url(https://interactive.guim.co.uk/fonts/garnett/GHGuardianHeadline-LightItalic.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://interactive.guim.co.uk/fonts/garnett/GHGuardianHeadline-LightItalic.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://interactive.guim.co.uk/fonts/garnett/GHGuardianHeadline-LightItalic.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:300;font-style:italic}@font-face{font-family:”Guardian Headline Full”;src:url(https://interactive.guim.co.uk/fonts/garnett/GHGuardianHeadline-Regular.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://interactive.guim.co.uk/fonts/garnett/GHGuardianHeadline-Regular.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://interactive.guim.co.uk/fonts/garnett/GHGuardianHeadline-Regular.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:400;font-style:normal}@font-face{font-family:”Guardian Headline Full”;src:url(https://interactive.guim.co.uk/fonts/garnett/GHGuardianHeadline-RegularItalic.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://interactive.guim.co.uk/fonts/garnett/GHGuardianHeadline-RegularItalic.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://interactive.guim.co.uk/fonts/garnett/GHGuardianHeadline-RegularItalic.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:400;font-style:italic}@font-face{font-family:”Guardian Headline Full”;src:url(https://interactive.guim.co.uk/fonts/garnett/GHGuardianHeadline-Medium.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://interactive.guim.co.uk/fonts/garnett/GHGuardianHeadline-Medium.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://interactive.guim.co.uk/fonts/garnett/GHGuardianHeadline-Medium.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:500;font-style:normal}@font-face{font-family:”Guardian Headline Full”;src:url(https://interactive.guim.co.uk/fonts/garnett/GHGuardianHeadline-MediumItalic.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://interactive.guim.co.uk/fonts/garnett/GHGuardianHeadline-MediumItalic.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://interactive.guim.co.uk/fonts/garnett/GHGuardianHeadline-MediumItalic.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:500;font-style:italic}@font-face{font-family:”Guardian Headline Full”;src:url(https://interactive.guim.co.uk/fonts/garnett/GHGuardianHeadline-Semibold.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://interactive.guim.co.uk/fonts/garnett/GHGuardianHeadline-Semibold.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://interactive.guim.co.uk/fonts/garnett/GHGuardianHeadline-Semibold.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:600;font-style:normal}@font-face{font-family:”Guardian Headline Full”;src:url(https://interactive.guim.co.uk/fonts/garnett/GHGuardianHeadline-SemiboldItalic.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://interactive.guim.co.uk/fonts/garnett/GHGuardianHeadline-SemiboldItalic.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://interactive.guim.co.uk/fonts/garnett/GHGuardianHeadline-SemiboldItalic.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:600;font-style:italic}@font-face{font-family:”Guardian Headline Full”;src:url(https://interactive.guim.co.uk/fonts/garnett/GHGuardianHeadline-Bold.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://interactive.guim.co.uk/fonts/garnett/GHGuardianHeadline-Bold.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://interactive.guim.co.uk/fonts/garnett/GHGuardianHeadline-Bold.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:700;font-style:normal}@font-face{font-family:”Guardian Headline Full”;src:url(https://interactive.guim.co.uk/fonts/garnett/GHGuardianHeadline-BoldItalic.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://interactive.guim.co.uk/fonts/garnett/GHGuardianHeadline-BoldItalic.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://interactive.guim.co.uk/fonts/garnett/GHGuardianHeadline-BoldItalic.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:700;font-style:italic}@font-face{font-family:”Guardian Headline Full”;src:url(https://interactive.guim.co.uk/fonts/garnett/GHGuardianHeadline-Black.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://interactive.guim.co.uk/fonts/garnett/GHGuardianHeadline-Black.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://interactive.guim.co.uk/fonts/garnett/GHGuardianHeadline-Black.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:900;font-style:normal}@font-face{font-family:”Guardian Headline Full”;src:url(https://interactive.guim.co.uk/fonts/garnett/GHGuardianHeadline-BlackItalic.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://interactive.guim.co.uk/fonts/garnett/GHGuardianHeadline-BlackItalic.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://interactive.guim.co.uk/fonts/garnett/GHGuardianHeadline-BlackItalic.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:900;font-style:italic}@font-face{font-family:”Guardian Titlepiece”;src:url(https://interactive.guim.co.uk/fonts/garnett/GTGuardianTitlepiece-Bold.woff2) format(“woff2”),url(https://interactive.guim.co.uk/fonts/garnett/GTGuardianTitlepiece-Bold.woff) format(“woff”),url(https://interactive.guim.co.uk/fonts/garnett/GTGuardianTitlepiece-Bold.ttf) format(“truetype”);font-weight:700;font-style:normal} More

    • 138 Shares179 Views

      in US Politics

      Vivek Ramaswamy stops spending on TV ads weeks before key contests

      by

      Vivek Ramaswamy, the Republican presidential nomination contender and biotech billionaire, has stopped spending on TV ads, it was reported on Wednesday.According to his campaign and analysis from an ad-tracking firm obtained by NBC News, the candidate spent just $6,000 on TV ads last week compared with $200,000 in the first week of December.Still, Ramaswamy’s campaign maintains it is still spending money on ads less than a month before the 15 January Iowa caucuses and the 23 January New Hampshire primary – just not on TV, which is the largest beneficiary of political advertising by medium with as much as $5.1bn estimated for the current US election cycle.In a post on X, Ramaswamy said “presidential TV ad spending is idiotic, low-ROI [return on investment] & a trick that political consultants use to bamboozle candidates who suffer from low IQ”.Tricia McLaughlin, the campaign’s press secretary, told the network that the campaign was “focused on bringing out the voters we’ve identified – best way to reach them is using addressable advertising, mail, text, live calls and doors to communicate with our voters on Vivek’s vision for America, making their plan to caucus and turning them out”.McLaughlin acknowledged that the strategy “isn’t what most campaigns look like” and it was “intentionally structured this way so that we have the ability to be nimble and hypertargeted in our ad spending”.Former president Donald Trump, who built his 2016 campaign using social media and text, reacted to his rival’s change of strategy on Truth Social, writing: “He will, I am sure, Endorse me. But Vivek is a good man, and is not done yet!”Trump has treated the young political neophyte as something of standard bearer, despite being a trailing rival, and has lauded him as winner of Republican TV debates.“Vivek WINS because he thinks I’m great,” Trump remarked after the most recent Republican nomination TV showdown in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, this month. The former president took a swipe at his closest polling rival, Nikki Haley, the former South Carolina governor and US ambassador to the UN, saying: “Birdbrain looked different & lost, but I give her second place.”On X, Ramaswamy indicated that his campaign’s change in strategy was planned.“We’re doing it differently. Spending $$ in a way that follows data … apparently a crazy idea in US politics. Big surprise coming Jan 15,” he said. More

    • 138 Shares99 Views

      in US Politics

      Man charged with threatening to kill Vivek Ramaswamy at campaign event

      by

      A man from Dover, New Hampshire, faces a federal criminal charge after threatening the Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy and attendees at a campaign event.The US attorney’s office for New Hampshire said Tyler Anderson, 30, “received a text message from the victim’s campaign notifying him of a political event in Portsmouth, New Hampshire.“Anderson responded to the text message on 8 December 2023, stating: ‘Great, another opportunity for me to blow his brains out!’ and ‘I’m going to kill everyone who attends and then fuck their corpses.’”The federal release did not name the candidate or say when the event was but charging documents identified a breakfast meeting on Monday, a time when only Ramaswamy was scheduled to stage such an event in the state.A spokesperson for the biotech entrepreneur told NBC Boston: “Unfortunately it is true. We are grateful to law enforcement for their swiftness and professionalism in handling this matter and pray for the safety of all Americans.”Anderson is charged with transmitting in interstate commerce a threat to injure the person of another, an offense that can lead to a prison sentence of up to five years and a fine of up to $250,000.He was due in court in Concord, New Hampshire, on Monday afternoon.As cited by NBC, charging documents said federal agents searched Anderson’s residence on Saturday, finding guns as well as the phone used to send the texts regarding Ramaswamy.Agents also found threats to another candidate, NBC said, including a promise to “blow that bastard’s head off” and the message: “Thanks, I’ll see you there. Hope you have the stamina for a mass shooting!”Anderson reportedly admitted sending messages to “multiple” campaigns.New Hampshire will hold the second event of the Republican presidential primary, with voting on Tuesday 23 January.The website fivethirtyeight.com gives the former president Donald Trump a comfortable New Hampshire lead over the former South Carolina governor Nikki Haley, 44.7% to 18.9%.Ramaswamy shone early in the primary campaign but has fallen back, amid a series of abrasive debate performances. According to fivethirtyeight.com, he now sits fifth in New Hampshire, on 6.7% support, with only the former Arkansas governor Asa Hutchinson below him. More