Jason Palmer (politician)

Jason M. Palmer (born December 1, 1971) is an American politician, entrepreneur and investor who is a candidate in the 2024 Democratic Party presidential primaries. Palmer won the 2024 American Samoa Democratic presidential caucuses, with 51 votes compared to 40 for Joe Biden. Palmer became the first presidential candidate to win a territory while running against an incumbent president in a presidential primary since Ted Kennedy defeated Jimmy Carter in 12 states (and in the District of Columbia) during the 1980 Democratic presidential primaries.

Early life and education

Palmer was born at Aberdeen Proving Ground in Aberdeen, Maryland, on December 1, 1971. His father, Lonnie Palmer, was an educator and U.S. Army veteran who was superintendent of the City School District of Albany. Palmer's family moved away from Maryland shortly after he was born.

During high school, Palmer won multiple cross country and track regional championships, graduating from Averill Park High School in upstate New York. He graduated from the University of Virginia in 1994 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Interdisciplinary Studies and earned a Master of Business Administration degree from Harvard Business School in 1999.

He returned to Baltimore, Maryland, in 2010. Palmer is a Quaker.

Business career

Early in his career, Palmer founded and grew three technology and services companies, before holding executive positions at Microsoft Education, SchoolNet, and Kaplan, where he was general manager and turnaround leader for multiple businesses, including corporate venture capital. More recently, Palmer was deputy director for postsecondary education at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and general partner at New Markets Venture Partners, a leading impact investing firm.

Political career

Early career

In the 1990s, Palmer worked for Daniel Patrick Moynihan, a Democratic U.S. senator from New York.

2024 presidential campaign

According to his campaign website, Palmer's campaign is based on three ideas: conscious capitalism, the new talent economy, and modernizing government. He has described himself as a pragmatist, noting that he supported Democratic nominees Hillary Clinton and Biden in 2016 and 2020, but voted for Republican Governor Larry Hogan in the 2018 Maryland gubernatorial election.

On January 18, 2024, ''Politico'' published an interview with Palmer, in which he touted his status as the youngest Democratic presidential candidate and one of the youngest candidates in either party. He called on Biden and all older lawmakers to "pass the torch" to a younger generation of political leaders such as Gretchen Whitmer, Gavin Newsom, or Jared Polis. Palmer also promoted his management skills from his business career, stating that if elected, he would hire a skilled outsider if he lacked considerable knowledge in a field. He also said he would center his term in office promoting technological advancements.

Palmer is on the ballot in sixteen states and territories, including New Hampshire, Nevada, Colorado, Minnesota, Vermont, American Samoa, Northern Marianas, Arizona, Kansas, Missouri, North Dakota and Hawaii where he received a combined total of 10,042 votes. Palmer won the 2024 American Samoa Democratic presidential caucuses. He received 51 votes, while Joe Biden received 40, with a total turnout of 91 voters. Both candidates won three delegates each. Palmer's victory surprised many in the Democratic establishment, with Rachel Maddow of ''MSNBC'' calling the race for him as "that person Palmer". Palmer became the first person to defeat an incumbent president in a primary contest since Ted Kennedy defeated Jimmy Carter in 12 primaries during the 1980 United States presidential election.

Before his victory there, Palmer digitally campaigned in American Samoa, posting on Twitter that "Washington D.C. is long overdue for a president who will be an advocate for American Samoa". He campaigned mostly through town halls over Zoom, having never set foot in the territory. He learned of his victory while watching TV coverage of the Super Tuesday elections with friends at a Washington, D.C. hotel conference. Maddow compared Palmer to Michael Bloomberg during his failed 2020 bid for president as both won American Samoa after being the only candidate to campaign there, and both are wealthy with large disposable incomes. Palmer loaned over $500,000 to his campaign from his own money. Shortly after the American Samoa primaries, three minor Democratic candidates, Gabriel Cornejo, Frank Lozada, and Stephen Lyons dropped out and endorsed Palmer.

Following his victory in American Samoa, Palmer began investing in campaigning in the Northern Mariana Islands, another territory of the United States, but only managed to obtain 4% of the vote. He has said he will support Biden if Biden becomes the Democratic nominee.

On March 27, 2024, Palmer announced TOGETHER!, a PAC to reduce political polarization and increase participation of young voters.

On April 15, 2024, Palmer announced on Twitter that he endorsed president Biden in the 2024 race, meaning he dropped out of the primary race.

See also

* Roland Riemers

References

External links

Campaign website

{{DEFAULTSORT:Palmer, Jason

1971 births
Living people
21st-century Maryland politicians
American venture capitalists
Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation people
Businesspeople from Maryland
Candidates in the 2024 United States presidential election
Harvard Business School alumni
Maryland Democrats
Microsoft employees
People from Aberdeen, Maryland
Politicians from Harford County, Maryland
University of Virginia alumni
American Quakers
21st-century Quakers