To remedy this, Yang proposed the "Freedom Dividend," a monthly UBI of $1,000 to every American adult. Yang's campaign strongly focused on the displacement of American workers through automation, a problem Yang stated was a major reason Donald Trump won the 2016 presidential election. In 2020, Yang did not meet the polling requirement for the seventh debate, but he later qualified for and participated in the eighth debate.
Yang qualified for and participated in all six Democratic primary debates held in 2019. Yang raised about $41.6 million over the course of his campaign, with the vast majority of donations occurring during the final months of his candidacy. Yang's rise in notability was accompanied by the development of a devoted online fanbase that was known as the "Yang Gang". Yang's profile significantly increased in early 2019 after appearing on the popular podcast The Joe Rogan Experience he later appeared on numerous other podcasts, shows, and interviews. In April 2018, Yang released The War on Normal People, a book discussing job displacement, automation, and universal basic income (UBI), which were central to his campaign. With no prior political experience and low public recognition, Yang was widely considered a longshot candidate by the media during the early stages of his campaign. On March 10, 2020, Yang endorsed Joe Biden for president. Yang suspended his campaign on February 11, 2020, the night of the New Hampshire primary. The 2020 presidential campaign of Andrew Yang, an attorney, entrepreneur, and the founder of Venture for America, began on November 6, 2017, when Yang filed with the Federal Election Commission to participate in the Democratic primaries.
2020 United States presidential election ( Democratic Party primaries)