Cori Bush, Jamaal Bowman…Why Challengers Are Beating Incumbents in 2020

In this segment, James discusses the series of incumbent primary losses this year, both on the Democratic and Republican side, and explains how this wave of new challengers were able to knock off these incumbents.

Typically, incumbents are very difficult to knock off because they have more access to money and fundraising, and they have more name recognition.

But 2020 is not a typical year—the times are extremely challenging right now. There is a public health crisis, which has resulted in unprecedented economic turmoil, and there is also incredible social and racial unrest. The people are starting to realize that their elected officials do not actually represent them. In fact, according to a Princeton University study: “The preferences of the average American appear to have only a miniscule, near-zero, statistically non-significant impact upon public policy.” So one by one, they are falling like dominoes.

In Missouri’s 1st congressional district, Cori Bush, the original Justice Democrat featured in the Netflix documentary Knock Down the House, a real working class candidate, unseated Lacy Clay, a member of the Congressional Black Caucus and who with his father has held that seat for more than half a century.

In New York, Jamaal Bowman defeated Eliot Engel.

On the Republican side, five time incumbent Scott Tipton lost his seat in Colorado’s 3rd congressional district, a small rural district outside of Denver, to his pro-gun challenger Lauren Boebert.

#2020PrimaryElection #CoriBush #JamaalBowman

51/49 with James Li - Commentary on business, politics, and the other things (from an independent perspective)

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