Event: United States presidential election, 2000
Asami
Banned
Qilai, Qilai!
A History of Modern China
President John Conyers
Event: United States presidential election, 2000
A History of Modern China
President John Conyers
Event: United States presidential election, 2000
The United States presidential election of 2000 marked the first United States election held since the Kargil War. With the world changed so significantly as a result of the conflict; it was no surprise that the effects of this global war weighed on the minds of the American people. The typical two-party state in America chugged on with monotonous pace, with the primaries being held both before and after the Kargil War.
The Democratic Party was, at first, unsure of where to go -- Conyers had made clear his intention to run for a third term. During the primaries, however, some few Democratic figures stood out as opposing the President's third term, and wanting to take the nomination and keep the President at two terms. Herbert Bush, the Speaker of the House, was one of the figures to do so. Many others were unnoticable in the mass of media storm around Bush's open separation from the President.
Popular campaign banner for the Bush 2000 campaign.
Despite the rocky start for the President's third term attempt; the party rallied around the President, and Bush was handed a sound defeat at the convention, along with his fellow competitors. However, it was becoming increasingly clear that the President of the United States would have to deal with a slightly less compliant Democratic Congress if he won. The President and Vice President Sanders were renominated without much issue, and the President gave a huge speech on the importance of America's future being in good hands. The last 8 years had been ones of prosperity and peace; why change course now, particularly in India and Pakistan's trying time, where the world peace seemed out of balance?
The Republican Party was less impressed with this display of "don't change the captain half-way through the journey" rhetoric. The race to the GOP's nomination was a crowded race, with dozens of figures running, such as William Blythe, Albert Gore, Richard Cheney, John McCain, Hillary Williams and Newt Gingrich. The initial front-runner in most polls showed John McCain leading, touting his experience as the incumbent Secretary of Defence. However, this lead soon faltered as he was attacked as being too close to the Democratic line for the Republican Party. Blythe and Cheney had primarily entered the race to gain attention to their causes -- Blythe crusading against "overreaching government and federal tyranny", and Cheney for "new 21st century environmental policies and business practices". Both men left the race not long after entering, gaining some minor attention and then fizzling out as quick as they had come.
The Republican race had narrowed down to a three-way slogfest between Williams, McCain and Gore. McCain campaigned as a traditional Republican; observant, fierce, experienced, and a standard-bearer on which the entire country could rely. Gore's campaign primarily centered on being detached from the majority of Washington's partisan mess, and highlighting his background as a man of the country, and his strong love for the nation. Williams' campaign hinged largely on her mass appeal being a female, and her urban roots, looking to gain the minority vote away from her fellow Republicans and from her Democratic adversaries through appeals that she was a civil rights candidate, and a defender of liberties.
Hillary Rodham Williams emerged from the primaries as a strong force in the nation. Through the 1999 and 2000 campaigning seasons, she consistently bled John McCain numbers dry, and swept most of the Republican Party's support base, securing her the nomination with ample room. Williams' choice of a Vice President seemed clear -- McCain. However, Williams snubbed McCain and chose Gore as her running mate; looking to appeal to the general liberal apparatus that kept electing Democratic Congresses and Presidents.
A third candidate, the presentative of the National Reform party, the general successor to the 1992 "Free Will" party. This party was less abrasive in it's approach to government interference, and sought to answer many issues that the party's many people had trouble with; as well, the party sought to introduce new methods of education, welfare, among other things.
The party's first candidates were two experienced businessmen. William H. Gates, the recently-retired CEO and Founder of the Microsoft Corporation was joined by the real estate magnate Donald Trump in leading the party's charge for a true "American third way."
The National Reform party managed to appear on all state ballots through a large-scale campaign conducted through the World Wide Web, which was expanding vastly, and becoming more and more a viable solution to political discourse and information sharing.
On Election Day, the results that came in were of mixed reception -- many pundits knew it was coming, others were surprised.
United States presidential election, 2000
John Conyers / Bernard Sanders (Democratic) - 272 Electoral Votes
Hillary Williams / Albert Gore (Republican) - 230 Electoral Votes
William H. Gates III / Donald Trump (National Reform) - 36 Electoral Votes
The election swept Conyers and Sanders into a third term in the White House, to expire in 2004. There was some concern over a particular sort of bad moon rising in the East, and on the stresses of the Presidency weighing on both the POTUS and VPOTUS.
But America wouldn't have to worry about the affairs of Asia... right?
((We shall return to China in the next update. I promise.
))I think it was illegal since then end of ww2 that you could run for more than 2 turns.
Did your P.O.D. butterfly that?
Did your P.O.D. butterfly that?
There's only one SMALL error, and I'm sorry if I seem nitpicky.
But the color coding seems odd. Red is bush?
But the color coding seems odd. Red is bush?
https://www.alternatehistory.com/discussion/showpost.php?p=11509803&postcount=120
OTL's 22nd Amendment has already been butterflied away. In case you forgot, this is already the second time a US president TTL has tried to seek a 3rd term since FDR.
First, Bush is not even in the election proper. Second, that red is Hilary, remember Sakura F was screwing everyone's alternate self by swapping their OTL party alleginces, so Dubya is Democrat (blue), Hilary is Republican (red) here.
Asami
Banned
In all fairness, Hillary Clinton and Elizabeth Warren were both Republicans when they were young. I simply removed the impetus for them to become Democrats.
And then I promptly screwed with everyone else.
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Asami
Banned
Yes, it was stated in a side update that the United States failed to ratify the 22nd Amendment, thus, the President can pursue unlimited terms as he sees fit. Doesn't mean it's any more popular and usually is only permitted in grave circumstances; Haig couldn't get one, but Conyers can with the Kargil War.
It's standard Dem-Blue, GOP-Red. Bush was a Democratic primary challenger who was defeated. Hillary Williams (IOTL Hillary Clinton) is a Congressional Republican, as is Al Gore.
Oh, I was just confused because the Wiki thing said Red was a Bush win... At the bottom of the Wiki thing.
Qilai, Qilai!
A History of Modern China
The error is right there. I think it should say Red denotes a Williams win?
Cool timeline,I like to see how this ends.
Something tells me things are about to get worse on the world stage.
One question though,how come China has only 700 million people?
Something tells me things are about to get worse on the world stage.
One question though,how come China has only 700 million people?
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Asami
Banned
A knock-on effect of a different time for China in the 20th century, population growth was far more easily managed; and didn't cascade outta control like it did in OTL PRC.
Don't worry, nobody is. Except maybe Theodore Roosevelt, but, well, everything has an exception.
And maybe Zhuge Liang.
