Major Events in the 2024 Presidential Election

Presidential campaigns are long, and this election season has been especially turbulent when it comes to political polarization. There are many notable moments that have influenced public perception of the candidates throughout the election cycle. Although it is easy to get lost in debates and changing polls, here are some major events to know about the 2024 Presidential Election. 

March: Beginning of Primary Results 

Beginning in early March, each of the 50 states held both state and presidential primary elections to nominate candidates for the presidential race. On Tuesday, March 5—or “Super Tuesday”— voters in 16 states chose who they wanted to run for president. The results of the primaries this year were former President Donald Trump as the Republican nominee and President Joe Biden as the Democratic nominee. Trump won the Republican nomination in all states except for Vermont, while Biden swept all Super Tuesday primaries. Candidates who performed poorly on Super Tuesday, such as Nikki Haley and Dean Phillips, suspended their campaigns and endorsed Trump and Biden, respectively. 

May 30: Trump v. New York State Trial 

The trial began in early April and was shortly followed by the start of Trump v. The United States. Trump v. New York State resulted in a conviction on all 34 counts of business fraud brought against the former president. The trial centered around Trump’s use of payments to silence a woman from revealing her sexual relations with him during the 2016 election. The verdict of this case marked Trump as the first former president to be convicted of a felony. In addition, the delay of delivering Trump’s sentencing after the presidential election may potentially be used as a way to evade consequences. Trump’s lawyers stated that there was no reason to rush the sentencing, which would allow the former president to weigh his next steps regarding the trial. 

June 27:  First Presidential Debate 

Hosted by CNN, the first presidential debate between Biden and Trump left voters in both political parties concerned. Both candidates spent the debate pointing fingers at each other for the country’s high inflation rates, abysmal immigration policies, and stances on abortion rights. Due to Biden’s multiple verbal stumbles and Trump spreading misinformation directly after he denied his conviction in the New York trial, the debate was nothing short of a wake up call for American voters. Following the debate, multiple House Representatives and senators urged Biden to withdraw from the presidential race for many reasons, including health concerns. 

July 1: Trump v. The United States 

In Trump v. The United States, the former president faced four counts regarding the insurrection on January 6, 2024. Trump attempted to dismiss the charges with an immunity plea—an argument stating that a president has absolute immunity from prosecution regarding official executive actions during his time in office. In response to Trump’s immunity plea,  the Supreme Court ruled 6-3 that presidents have immunity for official acts conducted during the presidency; however they have no immunity for unofficial acts. Due to vague communications with members of his office—such as former Vice President Mike Pence—prior to January 6, the court has yet to decide whether these actions were official or unofficial. 

July 13: Trump’s Assassination Attempt

During a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, multiple gunshots rang in the direction of former President Trump, who grabbed his right ear and dropped to the ground. The shooter was identified to be 20 year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks, who had evaded the Secret Service prior to the rally. While investigations into Crooks’s motive are still underway, many believe that the attempt was inspired by opportunity and notoriety. Trump later returned to Butler in order to finish his rally.  

July 15: The 2024 Republican National Convention 

Two days after the shooting, Trump appeared at the Republican National Convention and announced his vice presidential candidate, J.D. Vance. Vance is a senator from Ohio as well as a veteran of the Marine Corps. Trump recounted his assassination attempt, receiving much support from his Republican colleagues, and former candidate Nikki Haley endorsed Trump. 

July 21: Biden’s Withdrawal

Still facing blowback from his debate performance and following another shaky press conference at the NATO Washington Summit and a positive COVID-19 diagnosis, Biden announced his withdrawal from the presidential race, acknowledging concerns that his candidacy would ruin the Democratic Party’s chances in the election. Biden brushed off health and poor debate concerns while Vice President Kamala Harris announced her candidacy for president. Harris subsequently received endorsements from multiple democratic representatives and the Black Congressional Caucus. 

August 5-6: Harris became the Democratic Presidential Nominee 

Following Biden’s withdrawal, Harris exceeded the threshold required to earn party nomination in a virtual roll call and won an overwhelming 99% of delegate votes at the Democratic National Convention.  After Harris became the Democratic Party’s nominee, she announced Minnesota’s Governor Tim Walz as her vice presidential candidate. Walz is a veteran and has experience as a high school teacher in Minnesota. Harris presumably hopes that Walz will increase her campaign standing in the Midwest, a region with many swing states that will determine the results of the upcoming election. 

August 19-22: The 2024 Democratic National Convention

In Chicago, Illinois—with stars from Beyonce to Amanda Gorman—both Harris and Walz emphasized the importance of change by “turning the page” on their political adversaries. Harris took the opportunity to tell her origin story as a daughter of immigrants and presented an emotional farewell for Biden. 

August 23: Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Endorses Trump 

Former Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. suspended his campaign with vice presidential candidate Nicole Shahanan and asked his supporters to support Trump in the election. Kennedy’s questionable actions—from claiming doctors found a dead parasitic worm in his brain to dumping a dead bear in Central Park as a prank—had made voters far more skeptical of his candidacy. Although Kennedy will remain on the ballot, since dropping in national polling, he has asserted that he believes there is no path to an electoral victory for his campaign. 

September 10: The Campaign Debate

The second presidential debate, but the first between Trump and Harris, was littered with accusations from both candidates. Trump blamed Harris for the rise of illegal immigrants, crime, and inflation while Harris targeted Trump’s climate change and abortion policies. Democrats generally agreed that Harris handled the debate better than Biden and attempted to appeal to more moderate Republican voters by weaponizing the radical behaviors of Trump’s voters, such as during the  January 6 insurrection. 

September 15: Shooting at the Trump International Golf Club 

Police claimed that a man with a rifle entered the former president’s golf club in West Palm Beach with the intention to assassinate Trump. The man was around 300 yards away from Trump, but when spotted by a secret service agent, the suspect left by car. Harris, who was informed of the situation, expressed her disgust at yet another attempt of political violence.  

October 1: Vice Presidential Debate

The vice presidential debate, hosted by CBS, saw Vance appear more polished than Walz on stage. Even so, Vance admitted that people should not trust scientific experts on issues such as abortion and should instead trust him and Trump. A notable aspect of the debate was that neither candidate verbally attacked the other and Vance repeatedly dodged difficult questions regarding January 6. 

October: Podcast/Other Media Appearances

Kamala Harris spent the month speaking to a variety of popular podcasts. This included Kelsea Ballerini’s Call Her Daddy, where she spoke on abortion and her pro-choice beliefs. She also joined former NBA players Matt Barnes and Stephen Jackson on All The Smoke to voice her support for recreational drug use while simultaneously detailing her plans to improve taxing conditions for small businesses. Finally, on Lenard McKelvy’s The Breakfast Club to talk about the support she wishes to provide to Black Americans. She also spent some time discussing the dangers of Project 2025 with respect to Black Americans. 

Trump made his most notable podcast appearance on the Joe Rogan Experience to further engage his largely male audience, where he addressed a variety of topics for over three hours—many of which were apolitical. He also joined a group of comedians on Flagrant to discuss his assassination attempt and answer more lighthearted questions. He went on Six Feet Under with Mark Calaway to talk about the wrestling community and a surprise interaction with Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson. For two hours, he spoke to Will Compton and Taylor Lewan on Bussin’ With The Boys about sports and articulated his views on transgender women in sports. Finally, on PBD Podcast, he addressed his foreign policy and again spoke about Harris’s racial identity—casting unfounded doubt on her identity as a Black American.

October 27: Make America Great Again visits New York

Rowdy crowds in New York City attended a Donald Trump rally in Madison Garden. Special guests including Hulk Hogan and Elon Musk joined him to provide their support. His remarks were plagued by underlying racial sentiment, though his supporters largely rallied behind his ideas.

November 5 2024: Election Day 

Even though the official election day is on November 5, millions of people have already mailed in their ballots. Voting allows you to have a voice regarding what you want to see in the future. Electoral votes will be settled by December, and in January, either Trump or Harris will be sworn into office. Therefore, even if you are not eligible to vote, pre-register in order to prepare yourself for the following elections.