Running a Presidential Election from a Jail Cell: It's Already Happened Once

You may have heard the speculation that Trump may end up being convicted in one (or more) criminal cases and have to go to jail.

Which leads to this question:

Has a presidential campaign ever been run from a prison cell? The answer is a resounding yes!

This won't be another unprecedented moment for Trump because 100 years ago Socialist Party leader Eugene Debs ran for the highest office in the land from his prison cell.

How did that go?

Actually, it went quite well as Debs received nearly a million votes, about 3% of the national vote share. Being a prisoner was no shame to him or the Socialist movement. As a matter of fact, he relished his incarceration, and his followers used it as a way to get their message out.

Rallies were held for him, and supporters held picket signs with his prison picture and proudly wore lapel buttons that said, "For President: Convict No. 9652." Does that sound familiar to you? Look what Trump did with his mug shot.

There are some parallels between the campaigns when it comes to elections. Both campaigns were unfazed by criminal indictments. The two men's messages were however directly opposite from one another. 

All similarities end there.

Eugene Debs was fighting for the common man. Trump has been fighting for the wealthy minority in America.

Trump's legal attempts to subvert democracy are blatantly un-American. Debs wanted democracy to work for the common man by establishing unions and other ways to promote freedoms. 

Debs was imprisoned for anti-war rhetoric on behalf of the working class. If, and when, Trump is put behind bars it'll be for subverting our electoral system, stealing top security documents from the government and trying to overthrow Georgia's election results in 2020.

What is interesting is the examples of how imprisonment can code politically to the electorate, and the awkward logistics of running for president while stuck in a prison cell.

Compare the two men's political platforms for more insight.

Debs believed the only way forward for most Americans were reforms - such as old age pensions, support for health benefits, women's suffrage, a ban on child labor, and state support for kindergartens.

Trump's platform is anarchy-based cult followers who want to destroy the Constitution and plunge our country into an authoritarian state with a dictator for life.

Debs was unique with his then-radical foreign idea like socialism and presenting it to Americans. He was comfortable talking about socialism in the context of the Declaration of Independence and Tom Paine and Walt Whitman and John Brown.

The government was very confused about how to handle Debs imprisonment. Authorities ultimately agreed to allow him to write a 500-word letter to the newspapers, once a week. In fact, very few publications printed the letters.

Trump is unique for subverting laws and inciting a coup attempt to stay in office after he lost the 2020 election. Speculation is rampant in his case on what it's going to look like if Trump has to take up residence in a prison.

Some think he'll have a faux White House interior and complete access to the media that Debs never dreamed of getting.

What we have here are two populists that have made a major impact on the United States of America. One fought for the common man, and the other is fighting to disenfranchise the poor and middle class to benefit the wealthy.

As it stands, the battle for hearts and souls of Americans is a never-ending story.