In 1992, President George H. W. Bush defeats former Senator Paul Tsongas by a 52-46 margin, after surviving Ross Perot's primary challenge. Tsongas was at one point leading Bush 54-36 (after the Democratic National Convention IIRC). Before the first debate, Tsongas was still leading the president 49-42. And then the rest is history, Bush was assassinated in November 1995, leading to the presidency of Jack Kemp. Kemp is reelected in 1996 over Mario Cuomo due to the strong economy, though only by a 49.6-49.3 narrow margin. And then, he is defeated in a landslide after a series of scandals and the Dot Com Bubble Burst by _______________ in 2000 with a 54-42 margin, ending 20 years of Republican rule.
However, Tsongas is soundly beaten by Bush after the disastrous debates. What would happen if the debates are canceled for whatever reasons, and that Tsongas is elected? While I like Bush and that he is rated as one of the greater presidents for his foreign policy, Tsongas would be better than that crook Jack Kemp. However, Tsongas would have died in 1997. With the stress of the presidency, he would probably die even earlier in OTL. And then we get President Gore. How would a Tsongas presidency from 1993-96 and after his death a Gore presidency from say 1996-2005 be like, assuming that he is reelected in both 1996 and 2004? Would the OTL GOP takeover of the House of Representatives in 2006, which it maintains until today, happen much earlier in TTL?
However, Tsongas is soundly beaten by Bush after the disastrous debates. What would happen if the debates are canceled for whatever reasons, and that Tsongas is elected? While I like Bush and that he is rated as one of the greater presidents for his foreign policy, Tsongas would be better than that crook Jack Kemp. However, Tsongas would have died in 1997. With the stress of the presidency, he would probably die even earlier in OTL. And then we get President Gore. How would a Tsongas presidency from 1993-96 and after his death a Gore presidency from say 1996-2005 be like, assuming that he is reelected in both 1996 and 2004? Would the OTL GOP takeover of the House of Representatives in 2006, which it maintains until today, happen much earlier in TTL?