9 candidates running for president in 2024
3. Cornel West
Cornel West, an outspoken political activist and academic, announced his candidacy for president of the United States on the People’s Party ticket last June. In a Twitter post, West declared that he is “running for truth and justice as a presidential candidate for the People’s Party to reintroduce America to the best of itself.”
I am running for truth and justice as a presidential candidate for the People’s Party to reintroduce America to the best of itself - fighting to end poverty, mass incarceration, ending wars and ecological collapse, guaranteeing housing, health care, education and living wages for… pic.twitter.com/u3NYGUbG1S
— Cornel West (@CornelWest) June 5, 2023
He summarized his campaign platform as “fighting to end poverty, mass incarceration, ending wars and ecological collapse, guaranteeing housing, healthcare, education and living wages for all.” He elaborated on the philosophy underlying his presidential bid in a video accompanying the tweet, which includes several progressive policy goals, including abortion access and universal healthcare.
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“I care about you,” he proclaimed. “I care about the quality of your life, I care about whether you have access to a job with a living wage, decent housing, women having control over their bodies, healthcare for all, deescalating the destruction of the planet, [and] the destruction of American democracy.”
West expressed his discontent with both political parties. “Neither political party wants to tell the truth about Wall Street, about Ukraine, about the Pentagon, about Big Tech,” he said.
West took to Twitter a week later to signal his intention to pursue “the nomination of the Green Party for President of the United States” as part of a “broad United Front and coalition strategy.” He expressed gratitude to “the volunteers of the People’s Party for the initial launch.”
“In the spirit of a broad United Front and coalition strategy, I am pursuing the nomination of the Green Party for President of the United States. Go to https://t.co/cJYOyeiVTq for more information to continue to support this unprecedented effort to empower precious poor and…
— Cornel West (@CornelWest) June 14, 2023
In an Oct. 5 post on X, West announced that he was dropping his bid for the Green Party nomination and “running as an Independent candidate for president of the United States to end the iron grip of the ruling class and ensure true democracy!” On April 11, West announced Black Lives Matter activist and professor Melina Abdullah as his running mate.
People are hungry for change. They want good policies over partisan politics. We need to break the grip of the duopoly and give power to the people. I'm running as an Independent candidate for President of the United States to end the iron grip of the ruling class and ensure true… pic.twitter.com/34FFQARTEe
— Cornel West (@CornelWest) October 5, 2023
As of Aug. 26, West has secured ballot access in nine states with a combined 72 electoral votes: Alaska, Colorado, Nebraska, North Carolina, Oregon, South Carolina, Utah, Vermont and Washington. This makes it impossible for the candidate to receive the 270 electoral votes required to win the election.
The RealClearPolitics average of polls sampling voter preferences in a multi-candidate race, which has not been updated to reflect Kennedy’s departure as of Aug. 26, measures West’s support at 0.6%.
Ryan Foley is a reporter for The Christian Post. He can be reached at: [email protected]
