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Andrew Yang ended his Presidential Campaign on Feb 11 after winning over 17,000 votes in the first two voting states, Iowa and New Hampshire. Yang went from an unknown business man to a phenomenon outlasting Senators and Governors with almost no media coverage. With the help of his grass roots following known as the “Yang Gang,” the presidential hopeful was able to raise $21 million qualifying for seven of the eight Democratic debates.
On the debate stage, or really at any opportunity, Yang forced his signature issue the “Free Dividend” or universal basic income (UBI) into the public conversation. Since he put UBI into the public conversation, it has risen in public polling. According to polling from “The Hill,” support for UBI increased six points from Feb 2019 to Sep 2019. Support in the Democratic Party skyrocketed 12 points with 66 percent of the party supporting the program. UBI has become more popular with Independent voters. As of September, 48 percent of voters who identified as an independent supported a version of the universal basic income program.
Not only did Andrew Yang force UBI into the public discourse, he was a leader helping to change the stigma on drug use. The former 2020 candidate pushed to legalize drugs that have shown to have medical benefits such as psychedelic mushrooms and cannabis; as well as legalizing drugs for medical benefits, he wants to legalize opioids for personal use. The former candidate argued “If you did this, you could bring in some of this drug use out of the shadows and then get your user base down and then get the economic resources that are going to the cartels down.”He was also the first presidential candidates to endorse safe injection sites. While speaking to Hill TV, Yang argued that self injection sites would save lives; he told Hill TV “You go home and you’re still addicted and you wind up in many cases overdosing again,” he continued. “So we need to refer these people to counseling, treatment and safe consumption sites as need.
Many signs have shown that Andrew Yang might have been able to defeat President Donald Trump in a general election.
While President Trump correctly identified many of the of the problems the United States faces on trade, he has not done much to fix the issue. According to “In Homeland Security,” in Donald Trump’s first year of Presidency, jobs outsourced increased by 6,000 when compared to the average of the previous five years. With the “Freedom Dividend” Andrew Yang offers a real solution to many voters who are struggling in the modern economy.
Polling has also shown signs that the businessman would beat Donald Trump in a general election. An Emerson College poll from September actually showed him defeating Trump by three percentage points in a general election match up.
Andrew Yang should be commended for fighting to get UBI into the mainstream conversation while being funded by a grassroots small-dollar campaign. The former presidential candidates connected with the Democratic Party voters and is expected to play a role in democratic politics going forward.
Written By Jaylen Conwell
Newsweek: #YangBeatsTrump Trends after polls shows Trump Trailing Yang by 8 Points in New Hampshire
In Homeland Security: OutSourcing Continue to Grow Under Trump Administration
The Hill: Voter Support for Universal Basic Income Grows: poll
Featured and Top Image Courtesy of Gage Skidmore’s Flickr Page – Creative Commons license