Dennis Kucinich for President 2008 | |
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Campaign | U.S. presidential election, 2008 |
Candidate | Dennis Kucinich House Representative of Ohio (1997–2013) Mayor of Cleveland (1977–1979) |
Affiliation | Democratic Party |
Slogan | Strength through Peace |
Website | |
Dennis Kucinich 2008 |
The 2008 presidential campaign of Dennis Kucinich , House Representative of Ohio and former mayor of Cleveland, began on December 12, 2006 when he announced that he would seek the nomination for the Democratic Party to run for President of the United States. Although a Democratic candidate, he was not included in the New Hampshire debates on January 4, 2008 or the South Carolina debates on January 21, 2008 because of his poor showings in the Iowa caucuses and the polls.
On Thursday, January 24, 2008, Kucinich dropped his bid for the Democratic nomination after failing to draw more than 10% of the vote in a single contest. In withdrawing from the race, he cited his exclusion from Presidential debates and his desire to continue his service in Congress. [1]
On December 11, 2006 in a speech delivered at Cleveland City Hall, Kucinich announced he would seek the nomination of the Democratic Party for President in 2008. His platform [2] for 2008 included:
Kucinich describes his stance on the issues as mainstream. [3] "My politics are center for the Democratic party," he said in an interview before an AFL-CIO sponsored debate. [4]
Kucinich ranked close to last place (ranging from 8 to 12th) in early polls but got stronger by June and July climbed to 4th and 5th in several polls. In the Rasmussen Reports poll of August 14, 2007, he was tied for 5th place, behind Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton, Senator Barack Obama, former Senator John Edwards, New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson, and tied with Senator Joe Biden. Data from Rasmussen Reports A Rasmussen poll of Democratic candidates, released on September 5, 2007 showed Kucinich in a tie for fourth place with Governor Richardson with 4% of Democratic voters saying they support him. [5] The latest Fox News poll that did not include former Vice President Al Gore placed Kucinich with 4% of registered Democratic voters, behind Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama, and John Edwards. Including Gore, Kucinich is tied with Governor Richardson.[ citation needed ]
In the early primary state of New Hampshire, Kucinich polled as high as tied for 4th place at 7%. [6]
Kucinich has fared much better with unofficial online polls of "netroots" voters, winning the November 2007 Democracy for America "pulse poll", taking first place in over 40 states . Likewise, Kucinich took first in a Daily Kos poll of who won the Las Vegas presidential primary debate .
Kucinich's campaign was endorsed by Willie Nelson, Gore Vidal, Shelley Morrison, Viggo Mortensen, Sean Penn, [7] the Mexican American Political Association, [8] Atlanta Progressive News, [9] and Bill Rosendahl. [10]
Kucinich was excluded from the January 15, 2008 debate in Las Vegas, Nevada. Kucinich sued for the right to participate in the debate, but the Nevada Supreme Court ruled in favor of MSNBC. [11]
Kucinich was excluded from Texas Democratic Primary because he refused to sign a so-called "loyalty oath," which required the signers to "fully support the Democratic nominee for president, whoever that shall be." Kucinich lost his federal suit to be included on the ballot. Kucinich appealed the decision to the United States Supreme Court, which denied his emergency motion for injunction appeal. Kucinich was not included on the ballot. [12] [13]
On January 24, 2008, Dennis Kucinich dropped his presidential bid. [14]
Kucinich named Ron Paul as his choice running mate in November 2007.[ citation needed ] In a January 1, 2008, press release Kucinich asked his Iowa supporters to make Barack Obama their second choice as he endorsed Obama. [15]
On August 26, 2008, at the 2008 Democratic National Convention, Kucinich gave a spirited speech structured around the refrain "Wake up America!" The speech levies trenchant criticism of the perceived abuses of power of the George W. Bush administration, attacks the corporate control of the American political and economic systems, and rallies for a program of universal health coverage, universal higher education, tax reform, trade policy reform, energy regulation, civil liberties and de-militarization. At the end of the speech, Kucinich reiterates his endorsement for Barack Obama and Joe Biden for president and vice-president. His words electrified the audience who began delivering a standing ovation midway through the speech and continued cheering past its closure. [16]
Candidate | Actual pledged delegates 1 (3,253 of 3,909 total) | Predicted pledged delegates2 (3,409 of 3,909 total) | Estimated superdelegates 2 (694 of 825 total) | Estimated total delegates2 (4,103 of 4,934 total; 2,118 needed to win) |
---|---|---|---|---|
Barack Obama | 1,661 | 1,763 | 438 | 2,201 |
Hillary Clinton | 1,592 | 1,640 | 256 | 1,896 |
John Edwards | – | 6 | – | 6 |
Color key | 1st place Candidate has withdrawn his/her campaign | |||
Sources: 1 "Primary Season Election Results". The New York Times . June 26, 2008. Archived from the original on June 26, 2008. 2 "Election Center 2008 Primaries and Caucuses: Results: Democratic Scorecard". CNN . August 20, 2008. Retrieved December 16, 2013. | ||||
Dennis John Kucinich is an American politician. Originally a Democrat, Kucinich served as U.S. Representative from Ohio's 10th congressional district from 1997 to 2013. From 1977 to 1979, he served a term as mayor of Cleveland, where he narrowly survived a recall election and successfully fought an effort to sell the municipal electric utility before losing his reelection contest to George Voinovich.
From January 14 to June 8, 2004, voters of the Democratic Party chose its nominee for president in the 2004 United States presidential election.
The 2004 Democratic National Convention convened from July 26 to 29, 2004 at the FleetCenter in Boston, Massachusetts, and nominated Senator John Kerry from Massachusetts for president and Senator John Edwards from North Carolina for vice president, respectively, in the 2004 presidential election.
The 2008 Democratic National Convention was a quadrennial presidential nominating convention of the Democratic Party where it adopted its national platform and officially nominated its candidates for president and vice president. The convention was held in Denver, Colorado, from August 25 to 28, 2008, at the Pepsi Center. Senator Barack Obama from Illinois gave his acceptance speech on August 28 at Invesco Field in what the party called an "Open Convention". Denver last hosted the Democratic National Convention in 1908. Obama became the party's first nonwhite nominee, and nominee of African descent, for president. Senator Joe Biden from Delaware was nominated for vice president.
In the United States 2008 Democratic Party presidential primaries, the total number of delegates was 4050. Delegates required for nomination were 2118.
From January 3 to June 3, 2008, voters of the Democratic Party chose their nominee for president in the 2008 United States presidential election. Senator Barack Obama of Illinois was selected as the nominee, becoming the first African American to secure the presidential nomination of any major political party in the United States. However, due to a close race between Obama and Senator Hillary Clinton of New York, the contest remained competitive for longer than expected; neither candidate received enough pledged delegates from state primaries and caucuses to achieve a majority, without endorsements from unpledged delegates (superdelegates).
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The 2008 Iowa Democratic presidential caucus occurred on January 3, and was the state caucuses of the Iowa Democratic Party. It was the first election for the Democrats of the 2008 presidential election. Also referred to as "the First in the Nation Caucus," it was the first election of the primary season on both the Democratic and Republican sides. Of the eight major Democratic presidential candidates, then-U.S. Senator Barack Obama of Illinois received the most votes and was ultimately declared the winner of the Iowa Democratic Caucus of 2008, making him the first African American to win the caucus and the first African American to win a primary state since Jesse Jackson in 1988. Former U.S. Senator John Edwards of North Carolina came in second place and then-U.S. Senator Hillary Clinton of New York finished third, though Clinton received more delegates than Edwards. Campaigning had begun as early as two years before the event.
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The 2008 presidential campaign of John Edwards, former United States Senator from North Carolina and Democratic nominee for Vice President in 2004 began on December 28, 2006 when he announced his entry into the 2008 presidential election in the city of New Orleans near sites devastated by Hurricane Katrina. On January 30, 2008, Edwards returned to New Orleans to announce that he was suspending his campaign for the Presidency. On May 14, 2008, he endorsed Barack Obama at a campaign event in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
Debates took place prior to and during the 2008 Democratic primaries. The debates began on April 26, 2007, in Orangeburg, South Carolina.
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The 2008 United States presidential election in Iowa took place on November 4, 2008, as part of the 2008 United States presidential election. Voters chose seven representatives, or electors to the Electoral College, who voted for president and vice president.
The 2008 Michigan Democratic presidential primary took place January 15, 2008. Originally, the state had 156 delegates up for grabs that were to be awarded in the following way: 83 delegates were to be awarded based on the winner in each of Michigan's 15 congressional districts while an additional 45 delegates were to be awarded to the statewide winner. Twenty-eight unpledged delegates, known as superdelegates, were initially able to cast their votes at the Democratic National Convention in Denver, Colorado.
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U.S. Senator Hillary Clinton of New York unsuccessfully sought the Democratic Party's 2008 nomination for president of the United States. She won many primaries, although she ultimately lost the nomination to Barack Obama.
The 2008 United States presidential election in South Carolina took place on November 4, 2008, and was part of the 2008 United States presidential election. Voters chose eight representatives, or electors to the Electoral College, who voted for president and vice president.
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