US Politics: political party/ticket *chain of command*?

Debate Room
1

So I mis-read a headline this morning without my glasses (the marked out part was my reading mistake, the bold is the correct headline):

Biden Blinken will visit Israel at a moment of mounting tension over the war in Gaza.

Grabbed my glasses and realized my mistake, but it was too late. Now I want to know what would happen if a candidate IN GENERAL were to withdraw (voluntarily or not) at different points in the race before voting day? Anyone know?

To try to keep modern politics out of it, I’ll make up a party:

DumbDumb Party Ticket:
president: Alice
vice-president: Bob

What happens if Alice suddenly withdraws from the race at various points before voting day like:

  1. before the party convention?
  2. after the party convention?
  3. before ballots get mailed?
  4. after ballots have been mailed?
2

This article answers that question for death or incapacitation but I would imagine it would hold for someone dropping out as well.

3

Wow, so if Alice drops out, Bob might not even be on the new ticket? Ouch.

4

Are we talking about the USA in which case I would point out :wink: that the name pretty much sums up both parties. BUT if Alice drops out preconvention, then since she hasn’t been confirmed, a new leader would be chosen at the convention. The closer to the election it is the deeper the doo doo the country is in. If after the convention, Alice would be confirmed, the delegates would be recalled and a new person could be chosen. Before the ballets are mailed, assuming their is time someone else could represent the party and after the ballots were mailed the Dumb Dumb party would have to rely on a write in candidate winning the election but it would be completely unlikely. If for the sake of argument the rival party, lets call it the “mean daddy party” would seize power by declaring himself the winner. The supreme court would weigh in and support meany. The only possible good thing is that 1000’s of democracy loving yanks would immigrate to Canada.
Alternatively when Alice resigned the talking heads would all gather in their studios and speculate about how this latest constitutional crisis will be resolved while the mean daddy party will be stock piling their weapons in preparation to seizing power.

5

Well I got that one wrong. The article seems to be written before Trump started talking out loud about being a dictator and warning about blood in the streets. The niceties of rules don’t apply to MAGA.

6

Lyndon Johnson did exactly that back in 1968. You can go read up on the history of what happened back then. 1968 was a very turbulent year politically. Who knows what would have happened if the race was Johnson v. Nixon, or Kennedy v. Nixon. Perhaps Watergate never would have happened.

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