Republican

Due to a lack of financial backing and impressive poll standings, GOP candidate Bobby Jindal dropped out of the presidential race on Nov. 17. With his departure, 14 candidates on the Republican ballot. Eight of those candidates took part in the GOP debate held on Nov. 10 and made many memorable remarks. Although they are not front-runners in the polls, Jeb Bush and Rand Paul had their best nights during this debate. On the other hand, Ben Carson faltered in this debate by delivering a shaky answer regarding ISIS. His weakness in foreign policy has caused him to drop seven points in approval ratings. Aside from the three aforementioned candidates, the GOP candidates remained the same in their debate styles and responses. Donald Trump and Ted Cruz remained adamant on their anti-immigration stance, Rubio performed well throughout the night and everyone, but mostly Carly Fiorina, made sure to attack Hillary Clinton and the Democratic party. Trump has been the center of major controversy after he expressed his desire to place a ban on any foreign Muslims entering the United States. He leads the polls with 35 percent in popularity. Behind Trump, Carson takes the second spot with 12.8 percent, Cruz has 12.3 percent and Rubio takes fourth with 11.9 percent. The fifth GOP debate was held on Dec. 15; check mainstream news for a recap of the debate.

Democrats

Lawrence Lessig dropped out of the Democratic race on Nov. 2, citing lack of finances and publicity as the reasons for his withdrawal. This leaves three Democratic candidates in the competition. Hillary Clinton is in the lead with 55.4 percent popularity, while Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders has 32.5 percent. Former Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley comes in third with 2.5 percent popularity. While Clinton has the obvious lead, Sanders has managed to elevate his popularity by creating a strong presence in the Nov. 15 debate and dominating social media and Google trends. During the debate, Clinton commanded questions about foreign policy but was attacked for accepting campaign money from Wall Street donors. Recently, Sanders has been praised on many social media platforms including Twitter and Tumblr and has a strong support base in young Democrats. Many people who dislike Clinton’s past weakness in issues besides foreign policy, such as racial justice and Islamophobia, are now turning to Sanders with their vote. Although he has more support in the younger community, Sanders still polls far behind Clinton in the race. The third Democratic debate was held on Dec. 14; check mainstream news for a recap of the debate.