Cornel West’s third-party presidential campaign is stirring up unpleasant flashbacks to 2016 for members of the Democratic Party, some of whom are starting to grow anxious about the effect it could…

Cornel West recently announced he is running for president as a Green Party candidate, challenging President Biden in 2024. Some Democrats worry that West’s candidacy could split the progressive vote and help reelect Donald Trump if he is the Republican nominee again, as Jill Stein’s campaign did in 2016. However, West has supporters who see his run as a way to push Biden further left on issues. Still, even some progressives acknowledge West could hurt Biden’s chances of reelection. Democrats argue that beating Trump and enacting progressive policies requires electing Democrats first.

  • PostmodernPythia@beehaw.orgEnglish
    3·
    1 year ago

    Jill Stein was an unknown then, and Trump was a novel threat. West has more name recognition, which is everything in politics. The Dems should be scared. But they should also not shit on the leftier end of their electorate constantly. Votes are earned, and no citizen owes their vote to any single party. When the Dems stop assuming the left will vote for their candidates because they don’t have electoral alternatives, maybe some will come out.

    Also? Dems didn’t protect my bodily autonomy. I had to get parts of my body removed for full and equal citizenship. They had decades to codify Roe. I voted for Dems my whole adult life. All we got was endless fundraising letters. If the party can’t do their job, they should disband and let someone else do it, not bitch about leftist voters.

    • AnarchoYeasty@beehaw.orgEnglish
      3·
      1 year ago

      Vote for literally anyone other than Biden and you can kiss your bodily atonomy as well as all your other rights good bye. You realize you are basically saying fuck it let’s let the Nazis win because I didn’t get everything I wanted right. This line of thinking is suicidal.

      • Jordan Lund@lemmy.oneEnglish
        1·
        1 year ago

        Not really. There are a handfull of states where individual votes matter, in most others it will clearly be the Democratic candidate or the Republican candidate due to over-votes.

        We live in Oregon, it doesn’t matter who we vote for, the state is going to Biden.

        My sister-in-law and her family live in Kansas, it doesn’t matter who they vote for, the state is going to whoever the Republican candidate is.

        That’s not necessarily the case for folks living in Florida, Georgia, Ohio, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, Michigan, or Wisconsin.