It has long been expected, now ex-vice-president Biden has made his candidacy for the presidential election in 2020 officially known. In his party, the Democrats are expected high chances.
It has long been speculated whether and when former US Vice President Joe Biden will position himself as a Democratic candidate for the presidential election next year. Now he made his plans officially: As a competitor he wants to make the incumbent head of state Donald Trump the place in the White House in dispute.
20 applicants to Democrats
Biden is relatively late officially in the internal competition of the Democrats for the presidential candidacy. Meanwhile, 19 other party members have already set up. But in recent polls among the Democrats, Biden is far ahead and is considered one of the favorites for the 2020 election. The party-internal primaries in the Democrats will start in February.
In the Democrats Biden must prevail, among others, against Senators Elizabeth Warren, Kamala Harris, Cory Booker, Kirsten Gillibrand and Amy Klobuchar. Former Congressman Beto O’Rourke, Mayor Pete Buttigieg and former Minister of Urban Development Julian Castro and Bernie Sanders are also candidates. Sanders already wanted to play in the presidential election campaign in 2016, but was defeated by Hillary Clinton in the struggle for candidacy.
Candidatures withdrawn for elections in 1988 and 2008
It is not the first time that Biden has applied to run for office as head of state. In 1987, he declared his candidacy for the election the following year, but pulled this back only a few weeks later, because against him were plagiarism allegations in the room.
Also in 2008 Biden came as a candidate, but could already in the first vote in the preselection of the Democrats in the US state of Iowa only a few votes for themselves and also this time withdrew the candidacy itself. In 2016, Biden did not appear – for personal reasons: In May 2015, Biden had lost his son, who had died of cancer.
As a vice to Obama’s side
Enough experience can prove Biden in any case. For 45 years he has been in politics: he was a senator in Delaware and from 2009 to 2017 Obama’s vice.
Most recently, however, the 76-year-old was sharply criticized. Several women charged him with allegations of sexual harassment. Biden then announced that in the future he would be „more attentive and respectful of people’s personal space“.
