Donald Trump y Joe Biden are heading towards a second electoral contest for the presidency in 2024. In the absence of knowing who will win the primaries of both parties, there is a good chance that both candidates stage a repeat of the 2020 campaign something that, however, has been repeated several times throughout the history of the United States.
From Adams and Jefferson (the first duo to fight twice for the White House, at the end of the 18th century) to Eisenhower and Stevenson (in the mid-20th century), there have been several couples who have faced each other for the US presidency. But Trump and Biden, if they were to finally become part of this saga, would be the only ones to do so for the last half century.
Background
In fact, this formula has not been the usual guarantee that second parts were better than the previous one. That was the case of the pioneers John Adams y Thomas Jeffersonwho met for the first time in 1796. Each of them was a representative of the Federalist and Democratic-Republican parties, respectively. The final victory, very close, went to Adams.
In 1800 They met again at the polls, even exceeding the harshness of the previous campaign, in which various insults and accusations were exchanged. On this occasion, the election was won by Jefferson, in a somewhat more comfortable way, but the rivalry between both parties intensified, making the political environment more difficult than was advisable and highlighting that the Constitution still did not guarantee a fluid electoral mechanismsince to get to power Jefferson had to compete, at the last minute, with another candidate from his own party.
Others
In 1824 y 1828 an electoral rematch was repeated, with John Quincy Adams contra Andrew Jackson as protagonists. The elections were the final crisis of the first party system, prevailing since 1796, making the Democratic-Republican Party the only political force at the national level. The four candidates (Jackson, Adams, Clay and Crawford) faced each other, with Adams winning. In 1828, already as a representative of the new Democratic Party, Jackson clearly prevailed, both in the popular vote and in the electoral, becoming president during the following two terms.
In 1836 y 1840, Martin Van Buren y William Henry Harrison they repeated electoral contest. In this case they did so representing the Democratic Party and the newly formed Whig Party (made up of National Republicans and Dissident Democrats), respectively. The first election was won by Van Buren and the second, very comfortably, by Harrison. The country continues with the definition of its political development. It is the time when they begin to take shape mass rallies and electoral slogans.
Evolution
At the end of the 19th century, and 1888, Grover Cleveland (current president) is running for re-election before Benjamin Harrisonaction that they will repeat in 1892. Although the former won the popular vote in the first contest, the latter prevailed in the electoral votewhat is the one that prevailed, just like now. Republican Harrison, with his advocacy of high tariffs on foreign goods and his brilliant record in the Civil War, was victorious. Both met again in the fight for the presidency, four years later, with the victory of Cleveland, who returned to the White House for the second time.
Labor and economic turmoil caused the leadership of the Republican Party to pass into the hands of William McKinleywhat fought for the presidency against William Jennings Bryan in 1896 and 1900. With very different economic programs and a modern campaign at the level of electoral techniques (big corporations made huge donations), the former prevailed over the latter in one of the most complex elections in the country’s electoral history. At the international level, the war with Spain gave the United States control of Puerto Rico, Guam, and the Philippines. McKinley prevailed again four years later, leading to a period of Republican dominance.
Our days
With the confrontation between Dwight D. Eisenhower y Adlai Stevenson, en 1952 y 1956, we enter an era more similar to the current one. The Eisenhower’s popularity after World War II It led him to prevail in the first contest representing the Republican Party, with the intention of maintaining pressure on the Soviet Union and reducing the economic deficit. He claimed victory four years later, with the Korean War over and the American economy booming.
At this time, with his official declaration of candidacy for 2024, The one who is already preparing his revenge is Donald Trump. Whoever was president between 2016 and 2020, will try to prevail in the primaries of his party and then in the final contest, most likely against the current current president, Joe Biden. He will seek to remain in the White House to extend his term.
