2024 US Presidential Election: an interesting rematch

The battle for White House is now firmly underway with the former President Donald Trump pitted against his successor Joe Biden, who emerged victorious against the former four years ago. The previous American presidential rematch took place in 1956, when the Republican President Dwight D. Eisenhower once more defeated Adlai Stevenson, his Democratic rival at the earlier contest.

As in the previous election, the choice for US voters is between two old men – the Democratic Octogenarian against the Republican Septuagenarian. It is quite an interesting development for a country whose voters in the past had shown their faith on energetic, youthful or middle-aged Presidents such as John F. Kennedy, Bill Clinton, and Barack Obama. When constituents in other Anglo-Saxon countries have rallied behind leaders like Justin Trudeau, Rishi Zunak, and Emmanuel Macron who belong to the Generation X, the Americans have not shown an inclination towards following suit their transatlantic counterparts. During the primary polls, the Republican voters had the option to pick Nikki Haley – a former Governor of South Carolina – or the serving Florida Governor Ron Desantis, both middle-aged, but they were happy to select the controversial 45th US President.

The Republican contender emerged victorious at the primary elections in spite of not taking part in any of the debates with his fellow Republican candidates. The latest Reuters/Ipsos nationwide poll shows President Biden (39%) having a marginal 1% lead over Trump (38%) among the surveyed registered voters. However, a Bloomberg/Morning Consult poll has found that Trump is leading Biden in key battleground states such as Michigan and Arizona that would determine the ultimate winner based on the Electoral College system. The Manhattan-based real estate mogul’s realistic chance of regaining White House is despite him having been indicted in four separate criminal cases.

Meanwhile, with Israel’s military onslaught in Gaza causing a calamitous, humanitarian tragedy, some Democratic legislators have urged President Biden to endorse a ceasefire in the Middle East to ease civilian suffering. Bowing down to the pressure from the progressive sections of his party, Biden in a media interview had said that Israeli Premier Benjamin Netanyahu must pay more attention to the loss of innocent lives as a consequence of the Israeli aggression in Gaza. Recently, the US Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer called on Israel to elect a new prime minister to replace Netanyahu in order to move towards a lasting peace between Israelis and Palestinians in the form of a two-state solution. Seizing on the opportunity, the Republican candidate had termed both Biden and Democrats as harmful to the interest of the Jewish state, which has a powerful lobby and influence across America. 

The Republican Party is considered as pro-Israel and currently it has a majority in the House of Representatives. Come next November, they could be in control of both the Executive as well as the Congress, which would be a huge blow for those who fight for the cause of Palestine. The highly respected US political analyst Bill Schneider during Trump’s first term, described the former President as the most pro-Israel American president since Harry Truman.

A second Trump Presidency would fundamentally alter Washington’s support towards Ukraine in its defence against Moscow’s aggression. Many opine that Trump perceives the Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky as a personal enemy as the latter had refused to investigate Joe Biden’s son Hunter Biden in response to an alleged request by Trump during 2019. If Trump and the next Congress decide to curtail Washington’s support towards Kyiv, it would cause a severe dispute between the US and its NATO allies. Such a development would invariably favour Russia while posing a huge threat towards the sovereignty of Ukraine.

Will the US voters become adventurous next November and pick the former reality TV show host or act conservatively by placing faith on the incumbent? Whatever may be the outcome, the battle for White House would be a riveting contest.