Unprecedented Controversy Characterizes Presidential Race

Gigi Kim

Former United States President Donald Trump’s presidential campaign unfolds with a myriad of legal challenges, including four indictments, as he seeks to return to the White House. From 2017 to 2024, Trump has been indicted on four counts, including falsifying business records (he was ultimately found guilty on 34 charges), efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election, and violating Georgia state’s RICO act. 

Although one would think that the most pressing concerns for former President Trump’s supporters are his legal battles, poll aggregator FiveThirtyEight observed that Trump’s positive numbers among the GOP primary polls actually increased following the indictments in 2023. A majority of Republican voters view his indictments as politically motivated, or as a “witch hunt,” as Trump has called the investigations in past speeches and tweets. His Make America Great Again supporters remain largely undeterred, and their support has solidified. 

When United States Vice President Kamala Harris announced her candidacy for the 2024 presidential election on July 21, Trump’s response was an attack on her character, proclaiming “I think she is no better than him [Biden]. She could be far less competent, which is hard to believe.” Initially, Trump had refused to engage in a debate with Harris, claiming potential bias from the debate moderators, sparking criticism and speculation from the Democratic party that he was avoiding potential disadvantage to his presidential campaign. After changes were made to the debate format, Trump agreed to participate in a debate with Harris, with the first debate occurring on Sept. 9 moderated by ABC News. 

Both presidential candidates addressed topics of abortion rights, immigration, foreign policy and economic policy. During the debate, a key moment that sparked public scrutiny and controversy was Trump’s since-debunked claim that Haitian immigrants in Springfield, Ohio were eating pets. He remarked, “In Springfield, they’re eating the dogs, the people that came in, they’re eating the cats.” Although Ohio officials quickly refuted this claim, the rumor has been negatively affecting the small Haitian community in Springfield, exacerbating racism and tensions and even leading to school closures and bomb threats. Trump’s vice president running mate JD Vance later admitted on a morning talk show that they had been “creating stories” in order to attract media attention to the immigration crisis.

Even the celebrity endorsements have not been without controversy. On Sept. 10, pop singer Taylor Swift took to Instagram to announce her support and endorsement for Harris, and to address the slew of AI-generated images of Swift and her fans that Trump had posted to garner support for his campaign. A week later, Trump took to Truth Social to attack Swift, declaring “I HATE TAYLOR SWIFT!” 

As of recent, according to NBC News national polls, Harris has been taking a five-point lead over Trump among registered voters. However, the race for the support of swing states remains competitive, with Trump gaining an advantage through his stances on immigration and foreign policies. No matter where one falls on the political spectrum, it can’t be denied that this current election cycle has seen unprecedented levels of legal drama, personal attacks, and even violence (as of this writing, there have been two recent assassination attempts on Trump’s life). We can only hope that once voting concludes on Nov. 5, these vast divisions in our country can finally begin to heal.