A certain candidate in the Democratic Party seems more than willing to challenge President Joe Biden in the primary election for 2024. Activist and author Marianne Williamson indicated in a recent interview that she may be ready to jump into the race.
“I wouldn’t be running for president if I didn’t believe I could contribute to harnessing the collective sensibility that I feel is our greatest hope at this time,” she told the Medill News Service.
So far, former President Donald Trump, former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley and businessman Vivek Ramaswamy on the right have announced their bid for 2024. The possibility of a Biden-Harris 2024 ticket, although expected, isn’t solidified.
Marianne Williamson’s background
Williamson first became known for her appearance on “The Oprah Winfrey Show” in 1992 while promoting her first book, “A Return to Love,” according to ABC News. She has authored a total of 14 books since then that blend Christianity and self-help.
Although she has never served in office, Williamson’s political journey began with an unsuccessful run as an independent for California’s 33rd Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives in 2014.
Then, she launched a campaign in January 2019, seeking the Democratic nomination for the presidential election. But her polling numbers stayed consistently low, at less than 1%, per Politico. Williamson dropped out a year later, weeks before voting began, and endorsed Sen. Bernie Sanders, as the Deseret News previously reported.
Her comments at the primary debate came across as unorthodox. When asked what each candidate would do if elected president, Williamson responded: “My first call is to the prime minister of New Zealand, who said that her goal is to make New Zealand the place where it’s the best place in the world for a child to grow up,” she said, per Politico, “And I would tell her, ‘Girlfriend, you are so wrong.’ Because the United States of America is going to be the best place in the world for a child to grow up.” She also talked about “harnessing love for political purposes.”
She told Medill News Service that the media tried to present her as “silly” and “unserious” only “because they know I’m not.”
Williamson is the founder of Project Angel Food, a nonprofit that has delivered more than 14 million meals to ill and dying patients, and the co-founder of The Peace Alliance.
What are Marianne Williamson’s political stances?
It looks like she is just gearing up to announce this time around but her 2020 campaign detailed many of her political priorities.
Economy: Williamson supports free college, the removal of college loan debt, universal health care, and the eventual adoption of a Universal Basic Income.
Education: She wants to invest more in public schools.
Climate change: Mass mobilization, she stated, is necessary to help the country transition to clean energy.
Peace: Williamson wants the country to practice waging peace while staying prepared for war instead of allowing the defense industry to profit off of conflict.
Reparations: She stated that African Americans and Native Americans deserve reparations in order to pay for “moral and historical debts.”
Is Marianne Williamson announcing a bid for president?
Her post on Twitter teases an important announcement on March 4, reaffirming the possibility of her announcement.
In another post, she touted the need to start “a new chapter in American history.”
“What needs to end is an era of corruption brought about by our second Gilded Age, an era in which corporate profits were placed before the safety, health and well-being of people and planet,” she wrote.
“Other generations before us have done it,” she said. “Now it’s our turn.”