ABSTRACT
The presidential election of 2016 might have made a good sequel to the harrowing film Sophie's Choice, since both Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump had higher unfavorable ratings than any candidate since the beginning of polling on the subject. Donald Trump's nomination in 2016 was a shock to pundits, political scientists, and the American public. Before analyzing both the Democratic and Republican races in depth, this chapter presents the history of presidential nominations with an emphasis on the post McGovern-Fraser period highlighted in the book The Party Decides. The historical arc of presidential nominations has bent toward greater democratization. While much of the Democratic establishment was "ready for Hillary" when she formally declared her candidacy for the presidency of the United States in April of 2015, virtually nobody in the Republican establishment was ready for the wrecking ball that would ultimately obliterate them in the 2016 campaign.
