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Alternate Wikibox Thread

2040 United States presidential election

There's a bunch of lore I made for this but I don't feel like typing it out right now, so I'll just leave it at this for now. Re-uploaded with major fixes to the popular vote margin since I heavily fudged it before, the original post has been deleted.

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Yuri Irsenovich Kim (1941 – 2011) was a Soviet politician who served as General Secretary and first Prime Minister of the Soviet Union from 1980 to his death in 2011. Ethnically Korean, Kim's father was communist partisan Kim il-Sung, who was killed in the Korean Unification War. Some sources indicate that the elder Kim was due to be selected as leader of the Korean Communist Party before his death. After his father's death, the younger Kim and his family resided alternately in Khabarovsk and Vladivostok. Kim's childhood was disrupted by Soviet Civil War, during which his mother was killed. After his mother's death, Kim and his brother Shura were raised by their uncle Kim Jeong-ju, who moved with them to Moscow. The Kim brothers received extensive education as their uncle was a professor of economics at Moscow State University. Kim Jeong-ju was blacklisted by the MGB and arrested in 1955. He was never seen again. After his disappearance, the Kim brothers joined the Red Army. Yuri attended the Frunze Military Academy and became an officer. He was stationed in East Germany for several years before being sent to Mongolia as punishment for disobeying an officer. In 1964, he was transferred to the staff of Marshal Georgy Zhukov, the great war hero, which began his political ascent.

Zhukov came to rely on Kim and appointed him as his liaison to the Politburo. By 1968, Kim had ingratiated himself with Alexei Kosygin and joined his attempt to displace Nikita Khrushchev. Kim was rewarded by being appointed to the Presidium. In 1970, he was appointed Minister of Defence. Using his new power, he began eliminating opponents, particularly those in the Ministry of State Security. Kim weakened the security forces and had them supplanted with his own men from Army Intelligence. Kim accumulated power as Kosygin began to be abandoned by his allies. The onset of economic troubles doomed the aging Kosygin, and in 1980 Kim pressured him to resign and succeeded him as General Secretary and Chairman of the Council of Ministers.

The new premier was highly suspect to both party members and the Soviet people, partially due to his ethnicity, and also because of his reputation for brutality. Some feared the return of Stalin in Kim. With the assistance of his brother Shura, Kim engaged in a purge of disloyal element in the party, especially those who had supported Kosygin's domestic reforms. The Kims also disbanded the MGB and state security agencies and reformed them into the new KGB, which Shura was appointed head of. The brothers now possessed great centralized power not seen since the days of Stalin and Beria. Although Kim rolled back Kosygin's domestic reforms, he continued his policy of rapprochement with the west and the United States. Kim signed de-nuclearization agreements with Presidents Hogan and Byrne, and withdrew support for the Italian Communists as bloodshed heightened in that country. However, he continued to support communists in Africa and South America, and fostered a close personal relationship with Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi.

As he took office, Kim sensed that the structure of the Soviet Union was faltering. He blamed this largely on corrupt bureaucrats at all levels of the party, and ordered multiple purges of these bureaucrats. His efforts, while highly criticized for their overly broad nature, succeeded in clearing the party of the most corrupt officials. However, in many instances they were replaced by incompetent people whose sole qualification was their loyalty to Kim. Kim also had tensions with his Deputy Secretary Mikhail Gorbachev, who had been selected to maintain support of reformist elements. Kim suspected Gorbachev was plotting to depose him by promising reform initiatives. Kim attempted to circumvent this by introducing some limited reforms himself. However, this did little to resolve internal tensions. Additionally, there were growing signs of separatism in the Baltics and Caucasus regions. Kim stunned the nation and the world by promulgating the 1985 constitution, the first significant change since the 1951 constitution. Kim reorganized power in the positions of Prime Minister, intended for himself, and separated state institutions from military control. Additionally, the office of President was created, which would ostensibly uphold this arrangement and restrain an individual such as Kim. However, it was Gorbachev who became the first president, his price for supporting Kim in establishing the new constitution.

By becoming the first Prime Minister of the Soviet Union, Kim made a grand show of liberalizing the Soviet Union and promised things such as freedom of speech and press, loosening authoritarian restrictions that had been a fixture of Soviet policy for decades. He even spoke of closer relations with capitalist western nations. However, Kim had little intention on following through on his bold declarations. Instead, Kim announced the changes in order to draw out opposition from the hardline factions of the party. In 1987, hardliners attempted a coup to restore the old order. Kim allowed the coup to proceed and did not retaliate. Instead, Gorbachev was forced to suppress the coup in order to preserve his own positions and the new reforms which he had fought for. In doing so, Gorbachev enabled the military to return to power. This shifted the balance of power back to Kim and allowed him to seize power from Gorbachev again.

Kim did not backtrack as much as expected. He did allow limited liberalization in the Soviet Union, which remaining hardliners continued to oppose as surrender to capitalism. However, Kim greatly feared that the Soviet Union, and by extension himself, would be toppled by internal or external forces without these changes. He doubled down on these views after the failure of Arab socialism in the aftermath of Nasser's death, and the failure of the Chinese Communists to win the first elections after the death of Chiang Ching-kuo. Kim allowed the formation of an opposition party led by Boris Yeltsin, which became known as the Union Party, and the peaceful secession of the Baltic states. As Kim was feted by the western political establishment, he was denounced at home as the murderer of communism, and by international observers as an authoritarian who continued to conduct human rights abuses.

Friendliness with the west and especially the United States was disrupted by the start of the Netanyahu administration, as the new president's foreign policy threatened to undermine the fragile state of Middle Eastern peace. As America entered the Fourth Arab-Israeli War, Kim decided to support the Arabs once again. Soft support soon became hard support as the Red Army was deployed directly. This marked the first direct shooting war between the United States and Soviet Union. However, the war became an embarrassment for unprepared Soviet troops and proved unpopular within the Soviet Union. Kim decided to go to the United Nations to fight for peace. The United States, which had entered the war without most of their allies, was stunned when the Soviets formed a large coalition for peace that ended up including the Commonwealth and China. The United States was forced to withdraw and initiate the peace process. The diplomatic masterclass was an international triumph for Kim, who had managed to rally the world against the United States standing alone in an unpopular military enterprise. Public opinion around the world was favorable toward the Soviet Union, even among American allies and with anti-war segments of the United States.

However, within the Soviet Union, what it proved was that the Prime Minister was susceptible to public pressure. A protest movement sprung across the Soviet Union demanding further democracy in what was known as the Pink Revolution (pink being softer than red, and the revolution being soft in nature, not a violent overthrow). Kim acquiesced to the demands and established the 2001 constitution. In the subsequent election, Kim stood as leader of the Communist Party, which won 70% of seats. Thus, he was retained as Prime Minister. However, the ultimate power of Kim and the Party was destroyed with the flood of votes for opposition parties. The Communist Party won in the 2005 elections as well, but their majority declined.

In the last stage of his leadership, Kim fended off leadership challenges and survived the further division of the Communist Party, as members splintered from both ends to form new parties. Although Kim had granted democracy, he had failed to address living conditions in the Soviet Union, and the mid-2000s recession prompted more protesting and marked the beginning of a long period of civil unrest. Even as he became nationally unpopular, Kim retained power solely through his ability to control the internal mechanics of Moscow politics. The 2009 elections were the final blow to Kim's power. The Communist Party was returned with a plurality, while opposition parties like the Liberal Unionist Party and the National Motherland Front gained. In his last years, Kim was unable to stop sectarian and ethnic violence and the rise of insurgent militias. By 2011, he was expected to resign when he suddenly died on a state visit to Finland.

Although his brother and lifelong deputy Shura succeeded him as Chairman of the Party, Foreign Minister Lukashenko was selected to be Prime Minister by the parliamentary party. Lukashenko attempted to use Kim's death as a moment of patriotic fervor, interring his predecessor in the Lenin and Stalin Mausoleum in an effort to consecrate him as the "third great leader." However, these feelings simply did not exist. Lukashenko's government would be toppled in a few short months. Ironically, Kim's death allowed a reprieve from the troubles roiling the nation, as many were certain they would be able to gain power from the elections after his death.

Kim was a complex figure in death, admired for granting democracy and liberalization and protecting the rights of ethnic minorities early in his tenure, but also disdained for his brutal purges in his rise to power, long time suppression of free speech, and various human rights abuses conducted during the period of military dominance. Mostly he was remembered for his complete ineffectiveness at the end of his years. Internationally, he was respected for making peace in the Middle East and withstanding American arrogance, but also remembered for his acts of brutality. Kim was survived by his five children, three of whom are involved in Soviet politics today.
 
2040 United States presidential election

There's a bunch of lore I made for this but I don't feel like typing it out right now, so I'll just leave it at this for now. Re-uploaded with major fixes to the popular vote margin since I heavily fudged it before, the original post has been deleted.

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Jesus Christmas that is some good shit
 
Here's a pair of Wikiboxes that I've made and posted over on the Other Place, one being a bit more fleshed out than the other! I've spoilered them for the sake of not subjecting folks to a long wall of text and images. I hope y'all enjoy!

"Chicago is well worth a Mass."
- Joseph "Big Joe" Steele

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Joseph Steele (1878-1953), born Ioseb Besarionis dze Jugashvili and sometimes known by the nicknames "Big Joe" or "Mr. Joliet", was a Georgian-American gangster and businessman best known as the boss of the Chicago-based Steele Outfit and as the founder of the Uncle Steele's chain of restaurants, hotels, and casinos. Born in Georgia, then a part of the Russian Empire, Steele immigrated with his parents to the United States a few years after his birth, where they settled in Joliet, Illinois. It was in Joliet that Steele would grow to adulthood, having gained a reputation for fighting both in and outside of school as a youth, in spite of the fact that he otherwise excelled academically. Though he grew up in Joliet and would eventually retire there, by the time the Volstead Act was announced in 1920, Steele had already made a name for himself within the Chicago underworld as a thug, stick-up man, and occasional Democratic "bagman". There, with the assistance of his criminal protégés, the Slovakian Joseph "Little Joe" Saltis and the Irish Frank McErlane, as well as Illinois State Senate candidate John "Dingbat" O'Berta, Steele began to supply illegal alcohol to speakeasies in Chicago's Back of the Yards neighborhood. Soon enough, the Steele Outfit (as Steele's organization came to be known) grew in size, as several immigrant criminals such as Frank "Lefty" Koncil, Charlie "Big Hayes" Hubacek, and Jake "Greasy Thumb" Guzik embraced the equal opportunities for profit offered by Steele. Steele's organization profited immensely during Prohibition, expanding in size and power while still remaining on amicable terms with their neighbors in the Chicago Outfit (run by Al Capone) and the North Side Gang (run at first by Dean O'Banion, and later by Hymie Weiss, Vincent Drucci, and George "Bugs" Moran).

As the bloody war waged between the Chicago Outfit and the North Side Gang continued throughout the mid-to-late 1920s, Steele and his associates maintained a strict stance of neutrality, a stance which Steele enforced with ruthless efficiency, determined not to get embroiled in the conflicts of those criminals that he viewed as "lesser men". Instead, Steele put his efforts into maintaining ties with the Democratic establishment, with particular care taken to support the career of Chicago Democrat Anton Cermak, who Steele saw as a useful ally in opposition to the Republican mayor William "Big Bill" Thompson, a man firmly in the pocket of Al Capone and the Chicago Outfit. This stance of neutrality as part of Steele's so-called "Five Year Plan" to become legitimate would prove to be a wise one, as his eventual alliance with Cermak and the increasingly immigrant-based Democratic establishment kept the Steele Outfit and Steele himself out of the spotlight following the Saint Valentine's Day Massacre, which put a bloody end to the conflict between Capone's Outfit and Moran's North Side Gang. Unfortunately for Capone (and the federal government seeking to prosecute him), his victory would be short-lived, with the two years of peace being suddenly (and bloodily) cut short on June 7th, 1931, a few days after Capone was released on bail, as gunmen (at the time alleged to be from the North Side Gang, but later revealed to be led by Lithuanian-born Steele associate Nicholas "The Little Man" Yezhov) ruthlessly slaughtered Capone and his associates as they left for Sunday Mass. In the wake of what would come to be known in the press as the All Saints' Massacre (named as such because the killings took place on the Russian Orthodox Church's Feast Day of All Russian Saints, an irony that was not lost on Steele, who was in fact a lifelong member of the Georgian Orthodox Church), Steele came under scrutiny, though his political connections managed to ensure that he didn't face any serious charges in the long-term. By the time Prohibition ended in 1935, Steele had become a legitimate businessman, moving from the profitable world of bootlegging to the cutthroat world of real estate. He would go on to open the first of his Uncle Steele's locations a year later in downtown Joliet, operating out of a riverboat casino he'd acquired for a "premium fee" (in reality, Steele's associates had threatened the previous owner into signing over the deed to the property before tossing him a few bucks in compensation).

As the decades went on, Steele continued to grow his business empire, putting the money earned from taking the Uncle Steele's chain nationwide back into his adopted hometown of Joliet, and rumors about his criminal past gradually faded over time. In spite of his growing wealth, Steele continued to support the Democratic party and maintained his connections with his old ally Cermak (whose life Steele's men had saved during an attempted assassination of Cermak and President-elect Franklin Delano Roosevelt in 1933), although he never sought any sort of public office. Speculation about a rumored presidential campaign in 1956 to oppose the incumbent Republican Walter Elias Disney came to an abrupt end in 1953 when Steele died of a sudden cerebral hemorrhage at the Rialto House (Steele's personal residence, previously a vaudeville movie palace that the gangster frequented in the 20s, before he bought it and refurbished it on a whim) in downtown Joliet. Nevertheless, Steele's legacy is well-known throughout the United States, a testament to the popularity of the Uncle Steele's corporate chain, with the genial image of Steele's smiling face still serving as the company's logo. In Joliet, he's honored as "Joliet's Georgian Son", with the Rialto House now serving as a museum dedicated to the life and accomplishments of a man whose rags-to-riches story is seen by some as the embodiment of the American Dream.

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Here's one of the first wikiboxes I ever made, featuring a William Walker that went to Hawaii as an American missionary after a near-death experience, ingratiated himself into the Royal Family (to the point where he married Kamehameha V's illegitimate daughter Keanolani), then led an uprising of white American immigrants and Hawaiian Christian converts with British backing to overturn the Kingdom and form a British-aligned Theocratic Republic modeled after the United States.
 
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After the Labor split in the 1950s, the Democratic Labor Party successfully establishes itself as a viable party for Catholics and conservative workers. After a merger with right-wing Liberal dissidents in the 70s, the broad-based Christian conservative Democratic Party is formed. The Liberal/Country coalition breaks down as the Democrats encroach on the Liberals' traditional middle-class base. They move to the centre, targeting primarily affluent moderate voters, with the Democrats supplanting them as the major conservative party. Labor dominates among working-class and immigrant voters, while the regions remain primarily a contest between Labor and the Country Party.
 
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Donald Trump III (18 February 2009 - 17 July 2058) was an American businessman, contractor, policy advisor, celebrity and the last serving President of the United States, in office from 2052 until his resignation in 2057. The result of his fathers first marriage, before he married his second wife Julia Hahn, the young President was the third of his family line to serve the presidency.

The Senior Trump, often referred to by his cultish online following as “God Emperor”, existed in a perpetual state of controversy which he used to his advantage, deafening the blow for his repeated violations of the office until Americans didn’t blink an eyelid at him sleeping with a pornstar, setting riot police on angry crowds so he could make a photo-op, and let SNL obsess over his fake tan as long as they didn’t talk about the children in cages. He repealed the 22nd Amendment by popular acclaim following the absolutely boggling theft of the 2020 election, guaranteeing himself a third term in office, something the Republican Party spun to his favour, dubbing their man the ‘Great Reformer’. He also unintentionally made himself a martyr, when he was assassinated during a visit to Offutt Air Force Base in Nebraska due to a bystander throwing a home-made explosive into the path of his motorcade.

In response, his eldest son and eventual successor, Trump Jr., first elected to office in 2028, established the Department of Public Security and Order, an Erik Price-spearheaded secret police force that utilised torture, public deformation and harassment of individuals marked by the government as dissidents, which was mostly leftist elements from Civil Rights Activists, to Police Watchers, to those who openly identified as Communist, to even popular Twitter accounts that dared disagree with the Government. Junior also began legal moves towards outright banning all non-abrahamic/monotheistic religions — starting with Islam and Muslim faiths, then quickly moving to Judaism, Sikhism, Buddhism and miscellaneous folk religion’ — and and forcing legal immigrants into culturally assimilating under threat of deportation, which he called the “Making America” initiative. Like his pop, he also died in office, this time due to kidney failure instead of a domestic terrorist with a good throwing arm.

Only recently married to Alix Intrater, heiress to the Columbus Nova fortune, Trump was not as enthusiastic about receiving the nomination as his father might’ve, having famously said during an interview on The Daily Show with Pierce Campion; “I'm not ready to be President. I don't know anything about the business of ruling.” Regardless, he was soon inaugurated over the Democratic nominee by yet another suspiciously one-sided landslide. During his administration, America embarked on a series of reforms including the introduction of more proportional state representation and initiatives to modernise infrastructure. Ultimately, this progress was undermined by Trump’s commitment to unitary executive theory rule, oppressive policies pursued by his regime, and crushing defeats sustained by the American military in the Amero-Canadian War and the ongoing conflicts in the Middle East. Attempts to visit the front lines were outed as a publicity stunt and news of him "interfering" with the war plans of his generals lead many soldiers to outright mutiny. Back home, the President, as well as the Republican party itself, were starting to lose traction due to ongoing food shortages, riots, and reforms of workplace safety regulations resulting in hundreds of injuries not applicable to still-private healthcare. Not only that, but the First Lady was reportedly seen with the imposing Augustus Sol Invictus -- attorney, blogger, white nationalist, eugenics endorser, Holocaust denier, practicing pagan witch and now personal advisor to the President -- during night hours, creating a huge scandal that didn't die down when Invictus was killed at a CPAC conference.

By 2057, public support for Trump collapsed and he was forced to resign, thereby ending the Trump family’s dynasty’s generational hold of the Presidency. With the extended Trump family, he was imprisoned by the revolutionary government and executed the following year in 2058, as the Councilists had decided the family would be used by the White Power separatist movement to reinstate the Republican Party hold on the Presidency. In the years following, Trump was reviled by American historians and online propaganda as a callous tyrant who persecuted his own people while sending countless soldiers to their deaths in pointless conflicts. More recent assessments have characterised him as a well-intentioned, hardworking President who proved incapable of handling the challenges facing his nation.​
 
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Would anyone be willing to help me come up with county-by-county percentages for a New York election, based on this data? I'm unfamiliar with how things tend to break down, and a universal swing would be pretty obviously difficult to do have have the countywide data both be correct and make sense.

Libertarian (Weld): 39.13%; 2,474,544
Independence (Weld): 2.13%; 134,699
Reform (Weld): 0.32%; 20,236
Total (Weld): 41.58%; 2,629,479

Working Families (Teachout): 39.58%; 2,503,001
Women's Equality (Teachout): 0.69%; 43,635
Total (Teachout): 40.27%; 2,546,636
Republican (De La Fuente): 8.65%; 547,018
Conservative (Farley): 4.75%; 300,385
Democratic (Wiener): 3.25%; 205,527
Green (Hawkins): 1.50%; 94,859

Total (overall): 100%; 6,323,904

Edit: some percentages need to be retooled slightly, so if you would like to help (which would be amazing, and we could talk commission rates if you needed), hmu and I'll give you the new ones once I have them, if they aren't copied here.
 
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Ced Athelnothsson Styenslaw (9 Winterfullth, 1957 – 22 Medemoneth, 1989) was a Neȝman paramilitary commander. Hailing from humble origins, his elopement with or kidnapping of Bréswith Radburnsdaȝter Broȝtun in 1974 led to him, as part of an agreement with her family the following year, entering the service of strongman, future president, and relative of his bride Bursey Ceelwolfsson Cnowelaw as a gome (retainer).

Styenslaw would become close to Cnowelaw and, in letters from shortly after the latter was elected lodeman (president) in 1985, was referred to as his protégé. Cnowelaw’s presidency would however be cut short by the Ludovingian invasion and occupation of Neȝmany in 1986, and he was killed by a coalition airstrike that year. Following the death of his headman, he would form and lead a group that would later be commonly known as Styenslaws riders during the insurgency against the Ludovingian occupation.

He would become notorious for his brutal killings and mutilations of Ludovingians involved in the occupation, as well as reprisals against those who worked with them. Although the Ludovingian government offered a substantial reward for his capture or killing, he evaded such a fate with mass popular support until 1989 when, on the 22nd of Medemoneth, he was ambushed and killed in the Cyrc Fell near Eddershope by members of a pro-Ludovingian militia.

He is the father of Swithbald Cedsson Styenslaw, who has served as lodeman of the Neȝmans since 2019.
 
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Aleksander Reed Skarlatos (10 October 1992 – 11 June 2068) was a former US Army National Guard soldier, revolutionary co-conspirator and retired politician who served as the last Speaker of the United States House of Representatives from 2051 until his removal in 2057. A member of the moderate faction of the Republican Party, Skarlatos was a key political figure in the American Revolution of 2057. When the Second National General Strike began in 2055, Skarlatos - together with Virginia Governor Lee Carter - were some of the most prominent elected politicians to attempt negotiations with the People's Majority Council.

As one of Congress' most well-known speakers against the federally-sanctioned police brutality, and as a decorated military officer who became famous for stopping a gunman on a Paris train in 2015, Skarlatos was one of the few within his own party to both placate the striking groups while negotiating with domestic military to cease their advance in American cities. Following the forced resignation of President Trump III, he headed the newly formed American Provisional Government, first in continuing his role as Speaker, then as President of the new socialist-liberal coalition government, chosen by acclimation by the People's Majority Council, despite the more radical groups within seeing this as an contentious attempt at empty bipartisanship. In his inauguration speech, he swore, as President, never to violate democratic values, and ended his speech with the words "In the moment you begin to doubt me, get rid of me." His speeches were impressive and convincing for the moment, but had little lasting effect.

Despite his charisma and willingness to cooperate with most factions of the People's Council, Skarlatos' reputation plummeted due to a series of ill-timed and ill-received actions concerning the Nicaraguan Front. As with his predecessor, Skarlatos made a point of visiting troops on the front lines. However, the military heavily criticised Skarlatos for his eagerness to follow the demands of the People's Council, which included stripping officers of their mandates and handing over control to revolutionary-inclined "soldier committees" instead; the abolition of the death penalty; and allowing revolutionary agitators to be present at the front. Many officers jokingly referred to Skarlatos as the "poseur-in-chief". As military losses continued to mount, Skarlatos became less and less popular among the lower and middle classes, remaining American businessmen and industrialists, and especially among soldiers. Fearing a possible mutiny against him, as well as another rash of national riots, Skarlatos made a deal with disgraced Navy SEAL Eddie Gallagher, giving him special powers towards what remained of the Federal Police Forces in a desperate attempt to restore peace. Instead, Gallagher mustered his allocated forces and intended to march on D.C. to overthrow the People's Council. Despite an almost immediate dismissal, Gallagher's insurgents continued on to Councilist bases of operations in New York City, Ohio and West Virginia.

Desperate and surrounded on all sides, Skarlatos negotiated a deal with the People's Council; he would deputise all able-bodied members of the Councilist War Group, which included localised branches of the SRA, NFAC and newly minted Committee for Counterrevolution, who would working with rail worker unions and powerline technician guilds in order to impede Gallagher's army's progress towards D.C., as well as infiltrating the army for the purpose of sabotage and convincing soldiers within to desert. Forces in key battleground areas were given ammunition and arms from military bases in the event that Gallagher's troops should arrive and combat be necessary. After the failed coup, Gallagher was incarcerated in the USP Florence ADMAX alongside 30 other army officers accused of involvement in the conspiracy. On the back of Skarlatos agreeing to resign, the Provisional Government had lost all credibility and subsequently crumbled. Skarlatos narrowly escaped, and he spent the next few weeks in hiding before fleeing the country, eventually arriving in France. It was there he spent the rest of his life in exile, before dying of an coronary artery disease in 2068.​
 
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The 2014 New York gubernatorial election took place on November 4, 2014.GovernorTrump.png


Incumbent Democratic Governor Andrew Cuomo sought re-election to a second term in office, though incumbent Lieutenant Governor Robert Duffy did not seek re-election. Cuomo and his running mate, former U.S. Representative Kathy Hochul, won contested primaries, while Republican Donald Trump, businessman, television personality and chairman of the Trump Organization, and his running mate (Westchester County Executive Rob Astorino) were unopposed for their party's nomination after forming a 'unity ticket'.

Entering the 2014 campaign, Cuomo enjoyed high approval ratings and a large campaign war chest that totaled $33 million as of January 2014. The Cook Political Report, Daily Kos Elections, Governing, RealClearPolitics, The Rothenberg Political Report and Sabato's Crystal Ball all rated the 2014 New York gubernatorial election as "Safe Democratic".

It was believed that the Republicans would nominate someone who was not up for re-election in 2014 and so did not have to give up their office to run, and who would use the campaign to raise their profile for a more competitive statewide bid in the future. Initially, Rob Astorino, the Westchester County Executive, was the only Republican to enter the race. Astorino was not up for re-election until 2017. Business magnate and television personality Donald Trump had flirted with a run up to a year before the campaign. Trump had been urged to run by New York Republican figures such as Bill Nojay, who would later play a leading role in Trump's campaign. Trump had stated privately that the main condition for his candidacy would be to have no competition for the nomination. As the only candidate running for Governor, Astorino was approached by the Trump campaign on the prospect of a 'unity ticket', a ticket consisting of Trump running for Governor and Astorino running for Lieutenant Governor. Astorino accepted this proposal, something which sources within the Trump campaign expressed surprise about, fully expecting Astorino to remain in the primary campaign. Many of Trump's advisers, particularly Roger Stone, had been opposed to a Trump gubernatorial run. Stone had privately told Trump that a potential presidential campaign in 2016 would be more successful, stating that Trump could "run on name recognition alone" without the need for gubernatorial executive experience. Other potential candidates who did not run were former U.S. Representative Vito Fossella, Dutchess County Executive Marcus Molinaro and businessman and 2010 candidate for New York State Comptroller Harry Wilson. The Republican Party nominated Trump for Governor of New York and Astorino for Lieutenant Governor of New York.

During the campaign, Trump attacked Cuomo for the Safe Act, a gun-control law signed into law by Cuomo the year before. Likewise, Trump had also attacked Cuomo for failing to act on bringing back jobs, rising crime rates and stopping economic erosion. One of the main lines of Cuomo's campaign was that Trump was not serious about being Governor, instead intending to use the Governor's Mansion as a stepping stone to the White House. Cuomo also noted Trump's "presidential style" campaigning, often pointing out Trump's attacks on President Obama. Trump was also criticized for his promotion of the "birtherism" conspiracy theory, which alleged President Obama was not born in the United States.

Trump's campaign was controversial, with NBC later cutting ties with Trump. "They didn't want me to run because they wanted me to do 'The Celebrity Apprentice', they were not happy", Trump said.

On October 20, 2014, two days before the gubernatorial debate, The New York Times released video and accompanying audio they had obtained from an unknown source within NBC. In the recording, Trump referred obscenely to women in a 2005 conversation with Billy Bush while they were preparing to film an episode of Access Hollywood. The audio was met with a reaction of disbelief and disgust from the media in New York and the rest of the country, with many Republicans withdrawing their endorsement of Trump. Several New York Republicans called for Trump's withdrawal from the campaign, and to let Astorino head the ticket. As many ballots had already been printed, this would have been impractical and expensive. Former Governor George Pataki referred to Trump's candidacy as "a poisonous mix of bigotry and ignorance." New York Republican Chairman Edward Cox condemned the recording, but did not officially rescind his endorsement. Others, such as former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, defended Trump. The following day, Trump's campaign issued an apology, stating that the video was "old locker room talk." The recording became a highlight of the debate, Trump again repeating his apology, saying he was "not proud of it", while candidates such as Cuomo labelled him a misogynist. After the tape's release, opinion polling indicated a large reduction in support for Trump, particularly among women.

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Cuomo handily defeated Trump by a 55.2%-41.2% margin, although this margin was smaller than Cuomo's victory margin in 2010. Cuomo won all five counties of New York City, along with Westchester, Rockland, and Nassau counties. Trump managed to win a majority in upstate counties. In response to the results, Trump critic and former U.S. representative Sherwood Boehlert stated that the nominee was always going to be a "Republican sacrifice." After the election, Trump alleged that Cuomo, and President Obama, had worked to spy on his campaign. Trump also immediately disputed the results, claiming that he would have won if Cuomo and Obama had not committed fraud against him, although he failed to produce any evidence for such claims. By November 10, Trump had finally conceded the election. Trump would later attack the Republican Party, including those within his campaign, for "working against" him and "dragging his reputation through the mud" and stated that he may no longer consider himself a Republican in the future.

In March 2015, Trump formed an exploratory committee in preparation for a possible independent presidential run. However, on May 20, Trump confirmed he would not be running for president.
 
For some reason, when I read this I immediately assumed that Trump was going to start agitating for Upstate secessionism, with the ultimate goal being him elected Governor of that.
That would be neat, tbh

Although @DuncanI, I loved this take on Trump running in '14
 
So Militant Corbyn? So how would 2015 and other gubbins play out?
When I made this originally, the idea was that his fate would be swapped out with Nellist, except Nellist would have become Prime Minister. Which thinking about it is bizarre. I'm not sure what I'll do with it now, but I'm considering having TTL's extra Corbyn child with Diane Abbott be a character in the future.
 
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