The 2020 Presidential election will be the first election that I will vote in and I am stoked! People may think that it's weird that I'm excited to vote, but I've been waiting to vote in a presidential election ever since I was 15 years old, so when I turned 18, I begged my mom to take me to register to vote, even though it didn't take much convincing because she said she was going to take me regardless of if I wanted to register or not. When Twitter was lighting up with talks about Bernie Sanders possibly running for office in 2020, I decided to research (thankful for Google) the candidates who already announced their run for office because as a first-time voter, it's my civic duty to know who I'm voting for when the time comes in less than a year.
1. Senator Elizabeth Warren
The 69-year-old Democratic Senator of Massachusetts is also a former Harvard bankruptcy law professor and adviser to President Barack Obama. Senator Warren had to release an apology to Cherokee leaders for igniting confusion because of her 2018 DNA test results proving that she has Native American blood. If she sparked confusion over a DNA test, will she spark confusion in office if elected?
2. Julian Castro
The 44-year-old former Secretary of Housing and Urban Development and member of the Obama Administration is/was the mayor of San Antonio, Texas and would be the first Latino president of the United States if elected. Castro is a longtime supporter of LGBTQ rights and early childhood education, as well. I need to know, do you stan "Baby Shark" Mr. Castro?
3. House Representative Tulsi Gabbard
The 37-year-old House Representative for parts of Hawaii and Iraq War veteran. Gabbard was socially conservative (which she received backlash for), but now sings a different tune and is pro-choice and supports same-sex marriage. If she changed her tune outside of her candidacy, will she change her tune if elected?
4. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand
The 52-year-old New York Democrat and 2-term senator called for President Trump's resignation over sexual assault allegations (which he denied and he's still in office, if that lets you know anything). She's super vocal on gun reform and advocates for the rights of women, people of color, and the LGBTQ community. Advocating for the rights of women while in office? You're a solid maybe, Senator Gillibrand.
5. Senator Kamala Harris
This 54-year-old Democrat from California acknowledged Shirley Chisholm, the first black woman to seek the Presidential nomination in 1972. Harris is a former prosecutor who supports criminal justice reform. I can get behind reforming the criminal justice system, Kamala.
6. Pete Buttigieg
The 37-year-old Democratic mayor of South Bend, Indiana and the first openly LGBTQ candidate. He announced his run in a tweet. If that's not the most 2019 thing ever, I don't know what is. He's also the notable underdog candidate, so who knows how this could come out?
7. Senator Cory Booker
The 49-year-old New Jersey Senator was the mayor of Newark, New Jersey in 2006 and then assumed a Senate seat in 2013. Senator Booker endorsed the bipartisan legislation and added an amended to limit the usage of solitary confinement for juveniles in federal custody. Another candidate who supports criminal justice reform? I stan.
8. Senator Amy Klobuchar
The 58-year-old Minnesota Democrat and 3-term senator. She supports universal health care, wants to combat climate change, and wants to expand voter registration access. Those are some principles that I can get behind, Senator Klobuchar.
9. Governor Jay Inslee
This 68-year-old Washington governor is not scared to vocalize his opinions on climate change. Governor Inslee says that he is the only candidate who will make defeating climate change America's number one priority. A vocal president? Well, we've already got one, so would you be better or worse?
10. Governor John Hickenlooper
The 67-year-old former governor of Colorado wants to expand pre-k, create more jobs, and lead to the state through natural disasters. Excuse me governor, but how exactly do you lead the state through a natural disaster? Will you go to all places affected and help rebuild destroyed communities; like one by one: door to door? And creating more jobs is something every president ever has preached about, what makes you so sure you'll get it done?
11. Beto O'Rourke
This 46-year-old Texas native made the news with his run back in 2018 against Ted Cruz by a slim (and very slim) margin. Although he lost, he won the hearts of many people. Politics is in Beto's blood as his father was the El Paso County commissioner back in the late 70s and 80s. Beto also raised $6.1 million within 24 hours after he announced his presidential bid. I'll place a few bets on Beto if I do say so myself.
12. John Delaney
The 55-year-old is a former Maryland congressman who served 3-terms and was a first-generation college student for his family. He is dubbed as a self-made millionaire as he publically traded financial companies back in 2012 and began his political career a year later. Delany's main points of focus on his campaign trail are healthcare, immigration, infrastructure, pro-choice and pro-LGBTQ rights, trade, and foreign policy. Another businessman in office? I'll have to think about it.
13. Senator Bernie Sanders
The man. They myth. The legend. The 77-year-old senator is running independently; Bernie who lost the nomination to former Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton in 2016, but his legacy lived on as he was who many people wanted. Bernie is for universal health care and free public college, as well. There were rumors for a long time in 2018 if he would seek another run for office and Twitter basically exploded when he announced his candidacy. I guess it's time for people to "Feel the Bern" again.
14. Wayne Messam
This 44-year-old Democratic candidate from Florida announced his run in March. Messam plans to focus on canceling trillions of dollars in student debt. He believes that the American dream is going away for most Americans and wants them to meet their needs. If elected, he will be the second African-American president in office since former President Barack Obama.
15. Bill Weld
The 73-year-old Republican nominee from Massachusetts shared a Vice President with Gary Johnson for the Libertarian Party. Weld is the only person (that I could find) who is running against Donald Trump within the Republican party; Weld's even called Trump unstable. Although he's blasting Trump (and gives 0 whats about what people have to say), he still has conservative/economic views but thinks of himself as an extremist for both fiscal and social policies. I will be tuning into the Republican debate to watch these two go at it because I have a feeling that it will be a funny show.
16. Marianne Williamson
The 66-year-old Democratic nominee from Houston, Texas whose father was an immigration lawyer. Williamson grew up in a liberal household but was aware of social injustices. Her resume is very extensive (she is a non-denominational spiritualist) who is all about people. A week ago, she said that she lacked 40,000 people to qualify for the DNC debates and used Instagram to ask for more people to help her get there. I had no idea who she was (still slightly have no clue), she seems chill enough to make it on my list of maybes.
17. Andrew Yang
The 44-year-old Democratic candidate from New York is not a politician; he's an entrepreneur. He studied at Columbia Law School and Brown University, both very dignified institutions. Yang was awarded the Champion of Change in 2012 and a Presidental Ambassador for Global Entrepreneurship in 2015 during the Obama Administration. Yang is very clear about one thing: he is fearful for the future of the United States of America. Me, too Andrew, me, too.
18. President Donald Trump
The current POTUS who won over Hillary Clinton in 2016. He will be running against people from his own party/administration. Trump began his re-election run in 2017, which is strange. Does that mean he's not confident enough or too confident? Both are very damaging attributes, just saying.
19. Honorable Mention: Joe Biden
76-year-old former Vice President of the United States and the other half of the Obama/Biden bromance memes. Biden believes that he is the most qualified (and many people agree with him), but he said that he doesn't know if he'll seek office in 2020. I personally love Joe Biden and I won $5 in the 5th grade because I was the only person who knew that he was the VP was at the time.
