Five years ago, in November of 2020, Democrats across the United States were basking in their victory after months of campaigning in what had proved to be one of the most tumultuous years in decades. The turbulent 2020 presidential election between Donald J. Trump and Joseph R. Biden came on the heels of the COVID-19 pandemic, which had altered the trajectory of human society almost overnight. Americans nationwide were restless for liberation from the increasingly unbalanced and radical Trump administration as much as they were itching to break free from face masks, quarantine, and Zoom.
Shortly before noon on November 7, 2020, the Associated Press called the 2020 election for Joe Biden and his vice president, Kamala Harris. After that, 2021 looked promising: the Biden-Harris administration vowed to undo Trump’s harebrained and destructive policies, rebuild afresh after COVID-19, and set the stage for a new era of Democratic politicians with young minds and fresh ideas as a one-term “transition presidency.” The entire world was glad to turn the page on Donald Trump and watch him and his true-blue base sink into the shadows, yet another American mistake to be forgotten.
But Trump did not sink into the shadows, nor did his loyal army of supporters. Incensed at the result of the election, Trump refused to accept defeat, instead choosing to pursue a bitter and fallacious claim that the election had been “fraudulent” and “stolen.” Although Trump eventually, albeit extremely reluctantly, vacated the Oval Office, he never stopped campaigning; rather, he continued to tour the country, giving his signature brand of meandering and incoherent, yet nonetheless effective, speeches.
In the early months of Biden’s presidency, the idea of Trump running for a second, nonconsecutive term in 2024 seemed far-fetched, even comical. But Trump never went away, nor did his fervent desire to regain the White House. Three years later, it had become clear that the 2024 presidential election would be between Trump and Biden, giving voters déjà vu of 2020. Americans had not yet forgotten the fiasco that had been Trump’s first term, yet Biden’s age – a contentious issue from the get-go – had begun to catch up to him. As his elocution and physical appearance deteriorated, Americans on both sides of the aisle started questioning whether Joe was still up to the job.
The major turning point in the lead-up to the 2024 election was Biden’s jaw-droppingly awful performance in the June 27, 2024, presidential debate. Often regarded as the worst debate performance in American history, Biden appeared senile and confused throughout. When he spoke, he did so in little more than a whisper as he struggled to finish sentences or offer cogent arguments and answers.
Following his unqualified disaster of a debate performance, Democratic politicians from across the country began to call for Biden to drop out of the election. For several weeks, Biden mulishly refused to do so, insisting that his lamentable debate performance and mortifying gaffes were due to jet lag and illness. By the time Biden finally dropped out and endorsed Kamala Harris in late July, however, the damage had already been done.
Harris inherited a party that was deeply divided, demoralized, and disaffected after months of serious internal impasse. In that time, many moderates who might otherwise have voted blue turned to Trump with rose-tinted glasses. ‘Had he really been that bad? Wasn’t it fair to give him a second chance?’ While Harris successfully coalesced her party and boosted morale, she had, in many ways, been handed a race that had already been won.
The rest is, of course, history. But how did Democrats fail so miserably to vanquish a candidate who should have been so easy to defeat?
The first crucial mistake Democrats made in 2024 was letting Biden run for a second term. By the end of his first term, Biden’s public image was already defaced by his advanced age (he was 81 while campaigning for president in 2024) and declining mental faculties, making it understandable why many voters may have felt uneasy about him holding the presidency for another four years. However, Biden, like so many politicians before him, had developed a love of power that could not be quenched in one term. The octogenarian became conceited and overconfident, believing that he alone could beat Trump and that his age was a nonissue.
Perhaps age concerns may not have been as consequential had Biden’s administration developed a compelling reason to vote for him; however, here again, they failed. Biden’s main campaign slogan was “Let’s Finish the Job.” But many Americans didn’t want Biden to finish the job. They were ready for something different, just as they had been in 2020. Too many Americans saw Biden’s presidency as a failure: under his leadership, two wars had broken out, illegal immigration rose dramatically, and inflation skyrocketed. While none of these problems were Biden’s fault, he was inextricably linked to them in the eyes of voters. A candidate whose main selling point was essentially the preservation of the status quo was simply not effective with voters who wanted to see change in how their country was governed.
Where Democrats failed in elucidating their proposed policies, Trump succeeded. He accused Biden of “ripping the country’s borders open,” wreaking havoc on the economy, and inciting two foreign wars. Needless to say, Trump’s words were no more than glib. Almost a year into his presidency, wars rage on in Palestine and Ukraine, grocery prices continue to increase, inflation has not been magically “defeated,” and the administration has gone in the opposite direction where immigration is concerned. Nevertheless, to a person who just wants change, these claims, however hollow, are much more flashy and attractive than “Let’s Finish the Job.”
As Democrats struggled to find an eloquent new face of the party, refute Republican claims, and sell their own policies, Trump surged ahead. Far-right claims about America became increasingly intriguing to undecided voters. Many decided to give Trump a second chance to lead in a political environment that bore little resemblance to the one he had entered eight years prior. Trump’s lies, disinformation, and fearmongering were enough to swing crucial battleground states in his direction, and Democrats’ feeble and fumbled defense was too weak to swing them back.
Ultimately, dwelling endlessly on the past will not change the present nor the future. However, understanding the factors that led to such a crushing defeat will help prevent the same mistake from being made again. The United States is currently in the midst of a constitutional crisis; the democratic principles on which this country was founded are in deep jeopardy. If we are to ensure the Union’s continued survival, it is of the utmost importance that Democrats avoid repeating the mistakes of the past and elect an army of anti-Trump politicians who can turn the page on Donald Trump once and for all.
