Pierre S. Du Pont IV - Presidential Aspirations

Presidential Aspirations

With his term as Governor forced by law to end in 1985, du Pont, as the dominant Delaware politician, was widely expected by many to challenge for the U.S. Senate incumbent Democratic U.S. Senator Joseph R. Biden, Jr. But du Pont never found much interest in legislative politics and declined to run, preparing instead for a long shot bid for the Republican U.S. Presidential nomination in the United States presidential election, 1988. He declared his intent on September 16, 1986, before anyone else. Coincidentally, Biden was also seeking his party's nomination.

Running in earnest through the Iowa caucuses and the New Hampshire primary, du Pont presented an unconventional, but thoughtful program. As described by Celia Cohen in her book, Only in Delaware, du Pont, "wanted to reform Social Security by offering recipients private savings options in exchange for a corresponding reduction in government benefits. He proposed phasing out government subsidies for farmers. He said he would wean welfare clients off their benefits and get them into the workforce, even if government had to provide entry level jobs to get them started. He suggested students be subjected to mandatory, random drug tests with those who flunked losing their drivers licenses." These ideas were unusual enough that they left plenty of opportunity to paint du Pont as a novice and an oddity. In one of the debates future U.S. President George H. W. Bush made gentle fun of du Pont's first name, and called it "nutty to fool around with the Social Security system." After finishing next to last in the New Hampshire primary, du Pont left the race.