Over a dozen candidates are running for the 2020 Democratic Nomination for President of the United States. Each candidate is offering their own perspective and ideas on how to take the country forward. But let’s be honest — 15+ candidates makes it extremely difficult to keep track of what they believe, and who fits your values best.
That’s why I’m introducing a candidate comparison spreadsheet. The purpose of this spreadsheet is to centralize information about every major candidate running for President. I’ve captured the candidate’s name, link to their website, a quick list of priorities for them, and then general position stances in over 25 policy issues. My hope is this sheet can make it easier to compare candidates without feeling overwhelmed by the sheer volume of people running.
I’m about to post a few notes explaining how this spreadsheet was created and I highly encourage you to read them before diving into the sheet to understand how it was built. But if you’re short on time or already know how I operate, here’s a link to the comparison sheet here.
Notes Before You Read:
How Did Candidates End Up on this Spreadsheet?
- I have only included candidates who have officially announced they are running for President or at least have an Exploratory Committee. Whenever a new candidate enters the race, please be patient as it may take me up to a week to fill in their respective information.
- The candidates in this spreadsheet are included because they are on pace to qualify for the first Democratic Debates in June. This means they either have polled 1% in at least three different polls, or have raised money from over 65,000 individual donors. Some candidates have already qualified for the debates, while others have not but are on pace. I have not included candidates who are not on pace, even if they are elected officials.
How Did You Collect Information?
- The information in this spreadsheet is based on public comments, social media posts, interviews, and votes cast by the candidates.
- Due to the volume of candidates, this comparison sheet does not dive into candidate’s historical records extensively. If a candidate is asked about their previous positions, their response is included here. Once the field narrows a bit, I can provide thorough histories of the remaining candidates’ records.
- My hope is that after you, the reader, identify candidates who you like, you’ll continue following them and conduct any research on their past that you consider relevant for your vote.
How Often Will This Be Updated?
- I’m updating it in real time every day. However, I will be making a new blog post with summaries of what changes have occurred every three weeks. Once the field winnows down and we have primaries every week, I can update the spreadsheet weekly to keep up.
Why are Foreign Policy Issues so Bare?
- Honestly, this field is heavily focused on domestic issues. While a handful of candidates have extensive thoughts on foreign affairs, many candidates have few specific ideas. I’ll continue to update the fields, but just know this is something where many Democrats struggle to articulate specific visions.
Why Should I Trust this Information?
- That’s up to you. I’ve been following politics for over a decade, writing up summaries of debates, following polling numbers, studying policy issues, and being involved in policy advocacy. I’ve led voter registration drives, knocked on thousands of doors, and have done my best to invite others to get involved.
- I cannot stress enough this spreadsheet serves as a way to centralize information about the candidates, not only to provide insight on their policy stances, but to offer you the opportunity to prioritize who to follow. My hope is you can use this information to make informed decisions of your own.
Who are You Supporting in 2020?
- I don’t know yet. A part of what’s been wonderful about putting this spreadsheet together is I’ve learned so much about each of the candidates running.
- For full disclosure, however, I will be posting any candidate for president I’ve donated to, along with the amount. These are candidates I’ve been impressed with and want to ensure they make the debate stage. I also have friends working for their campaigns and they asked me for a quick donation at the time of launch. This list will be updated if I make further donations:
- Kirsten Gillibrand — $35
- Kamala Harris — $10
- Pete Buttigieg — $5
- John Hickenlooper — $5
How Can I Share This with Friends?
- You can either share this blog post, or you can even share the Google Sheet link directly to anyone! I’ve made it so anyone can share and view.
How Can I Contact You with Suggestions, Clarifications, Revisions, etc.?
- Email me at Comparison2020@yahoo.com if you have any questions, concerns, or believe information is incorrect. This is just being pasted together in real-time, so any feedback is appreciated.
Thanks again for reading all the notes. I hope they offered insight on how this comparison sheet can be a useful tool in making your decision in 2020. If you didn’t click the link above, you can find the comparison sheet here (I’m also embedding it into this blog post, but I’d advise moving it to an open tab so it is easier to navigate).
One last note: I am doing this because I want people to have the best information possible at their disposal when making a decision on who to vote for. I’ll work on this as much as I can! However, it is time consuming, and so donations will always be appreciated (but NEVER required). If you’d like to donate, feel free to donate via Venmo to @Peter-Butler-11.
Thanks again, and I hope this helps!