By Jason Suh ’17, Staff Writer

     When Barack Obama was re-elected in 2012, people already began to draw names of potential candidates for 2016. Now that the president’s second term is nearing its end, both the Democratic and Republican parties are in the process of determining who to give their respective nominations for the general election. Known as the primaries, this process serves as the means through which each political party can vote for one representative to participate in the presidential race. While the specific dates of the primaries are unknown, candidates across all parties are currently campaigning to earn a nomination from their peers.

        The race for the Republican nomination is clearly the center of attention at the moment, with televised debates and ongoing drama around the candidates. As Young Democrats Vice President Aidan Fox noted, “While we’re in the heat of the Republican primary race, the Democratic primary race is seemingly in its early stages.” Although the Democratic race has been undoubtedly overshadowed by the Republicans as of late, the implications of the Democratic race are nonetheless vast and largely understood. The most well-known figure to have entered the Democratic primary is Hillary Rodham Clinton, the former Secretary of State under the current president. Another candidate is Vermont senator Bernie Sanders, who is known for his progressive voice and self-proclaimed democratic socialist inclinations. Although there are various other candidates running, including Martin O’Malley, Jim Webb, and Lincoln Chafee, Sanders and Clinton are currently leading in polls by significant margins. (Source:http://elections.huffingtonpost.com/pollster/2016-national-democratic-primary)

        In recent news, Clinton has sparked mass controversy over her email scandal, and has thus been running in the primary with a rather damaged reputation. Aidan Fox emphasized the importance of this poor perception by stating that “Clinton’s tarnished public image as a result of scandals and several incidents of reversing on policies is extremely detrimental to her campaign, and rightfully so.” Case in point: polls conducted by the Wall Street Journal indicate that 61% of Americans believe her to not be “honest and trustworthy.” Mr. Bitler, a physics teacher and Young Republicans faculty advisor, asserted, “she [Clinton] has told an abundant amount of lies, with the email scandal, and her handling of Benghazi.” He went on to say, however, that “if Clinton survives the email scandal, she’ll be a stronger candidate than Sanders, since she’s not as far left.”

        Bernie Sanders is indeed a politician known for his progressivism, especially on matters such as income equality, universal healthcare, climate change, and LGBT rights. While his progressivism “may prove to be a problem in a national election,” as told by Aidan, his authentic-like demeanor (particularly in comparison to Clinton, in the eyes of many voters) may appeal to some. Elias Neibart, member of the Young Republicans, considers Sanders to be a potential challenge to conservatives in the general election for this reason: “I believe that Sanders poses a very interesting threat to the GOP. The American people are looking for something genuine, something that will be different from the mendacity of the current Washington establishment, and Sanders is a very authentic candidate, even though I disagree with every one of his policies.”

       Finally, while he is not currently running for the nomination, Vice President Joe Biden nonetheless poses a strong, potential threat to the chances of the other candidates. In the words of Aidan Fox, “If Joe Biden, were to enter the race, he would be a serious contender for the Democratic nomination and having gained support in the primary, he would be more likely to win a national election than Clinton and possibly Sanders.” One of Biden’s stand-out qualities in comparison to his competition is his experience (particularly with his term as Vice President), which he could potentially utilize to edge Clinton and Sanders. However, whether or not Biden will actually choose to participate in the primary is up in the air, and may thus be a deciding factor in who ultimately receives the nomination.

Simply put, the democratic primary seems like it will be a cutthroat race between Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders, with Joe Biden looming as a potentially game-changing wildcard. Each of the candidates involved in the process are quite different, and will offer something unique to the table if elected into office – although whether that something will be a positive or negative change, it remains to be seen.