Only hours after I posted “We Live in Interesting Times”, politics just got a whole lot more interesting as President Joe Biden announced he was not going to be a candidate for President for the 2024 US Elections. Biden endorsed Vice-President Kamala Harris for the top of the new Democratic ticket.
Of course there had been so much talk last week about the future that Biden might step down that it almost took over the conversation of the Republican National Convention. It certainly had equal billing to the Trump assassination attempt. The most interesting thing to come will be how the organizers of the Democratic National Convention will resolve the selection process for delegates of the Democratic party. No doubt there could be open or brokered convention.
There are few examples of something like this happening, the most recent was in 1968 when President Lyndon Johnson decided not to seek re-election after a poor showing in the New Hampshire primary and dissent in the party due to his leadership.
While it is not like 2024, it does present an example of how the Democratic Party had to pivot when a likely presumptive nominee dropped out of the race.
The ’68 race ending with VP Hubert Humphrey inheriting Johnson delegates and super delegates to win the nomination. Humphrey lost White House and the general election to Richard Nixon. The ’68 Democratic Presidential race was a three-candidate race between Humphrey, Robert Kennedy (who was shot and killed June 5th) and Senator Eugene McCarthy. Ironically, like the ’68 DNC, the 2024 DNC will take place in Chicago.
The last brokered conventions took place in 1952 Adlai Stevenson II (Democrat) and Dwight D. Eisenhower (Republican) were winners in brokered conventions. Stevenson had not campaigned for the nomination but was drafted at the convention and won the democratic party’s nomination.
The ’52 Republican convention was a bit messier with Eisenhower and Robert Taft (son of Howard Taft, the 27th US President ) neck and neck after on ballot, but on the second ballot there was a shift in votes with almost half of Taft’s votes from the first ballot sifting to Eisenhower and thereby making the former US General the Republican the party’s nominee with Richard Nixon his VP Nominee.
The 1952 Democrat and Republican conventions were also held in Chicago.
Folks, we’re only weeks away from the 2024 DNC scheduled for August 19-22. Biden’s resignation as a Presidential candidate may push the Republican campaign to the second shelf as rumours, whispers and hearsay are going to be flying we are going to hear some outlandish claims from the Trump/Vance. The GOP needs to take this time to push their agenda and not attack anyone who might seem like the presumptive Democrat nominee. I can guarantee they won’t be doing this.
Yes indeed, we live in interesting times!
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