Don't Worry. I Won't Become President of the United States Tomorrow.

In theory anybody qualified to be president under Article II, Section I of the U.S. Constitution has a chance at winning the office. A fact probably frightening to some is that I meet all the qualifications.

Don't worry about me becoming president in 2024. The United States has safeguards to make sure that won't happen. As the YouTube video above points out there is basically an unwritten rule that in modern times a candidate must be in one of the two major political parties. I am independent.

Even if I weren't and belonged to one of the two major political parties I would still have less chance of becoming the POTUS if I run against an incumbent president. In general incumbents such as Donald Trump have advantages their running challengers in an election don't have such as:

  • Easier access to campaign finance and more support from their party who want to keep the incumbent in office. For example, having a dinner fundraiser in which you get to eat with the sitting president tends to make more money than a dinner fundraiser for a hopeful candidate.

  • More name recognition because of the office the incumbent has already occupied.

  • The incumbent can always increase their media exposure with events such as press conferences which is like free political advertising.

  • The perception that the incumbent already knows how to do the job and a new president has to take a little time to get acclimated to the office before they become effective. For example, an incumbent president already has a history dealing with other world leaders and a new president would have to start those same relationships from scratch.

Since I am independent if Trump wins I won't be nominated by the Republican party to run in 2024. If Biden wins tomorrow and through some impossible grassroots campaign during the next two years I somehow find myself on the campaign trail I would most likely lose to the incumbent Biden or a new first term Republican.

Democracy works. I won't become president of the United States anytime soon.