The following is the third edition of a monthly series chronicling the 2020 United States presidential election. It features original material compiled throughout the previous month after an overview of the month's biggest stories.
This month's spotlight on the campaign trail includes interviews with the vice presidential nominees of the American Solidarity Party, the Bread and Roses Party, and the Unity Party of America.
As the campaign reached July, presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden led incumbent President Donald Trump, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, in the RealClearPolitics head-to-head polling average, 49.7 percent to 40.3 percent.
On July 1, the city of Seattle cleared the autonomous CHAZ/CHOP (Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone/Capitol Hill Organized Protest).  Nevertheless, civil unrest including the toppling of statues, still stemming from the police killing of George Floyd in May, continued elsewhere in the US. President Trump sent Department of Homeland Security officers to protect federal buildings in Portland.  Biden criticized the move, arguing Trump was "sow[ing] chaos and division" and "mak[ing] matters worse."  The Trump campaign accused Biden of "siding with criminals." Trump maintained the campaign theme of law and order.  While the nation continued to suffer through the coronavirus pandemic, the President traveled to South Dakota, which, unlike most states, had not enacted a stay-at-home order, to take part in a celebration at Mount Rushmore on the eve of Independence Day.  He delivered a speech in which he condemned rioters who desecrate statues and memorials throughout the nation.  In addition, he announced the creation of a special park with statues to honor historic US figures.  Most attendees at the event did not practice social distancing or wear face masks.   The next day, Trump held a Fourth of July "Salute to America" in Washington, D.C. in which he delivered another speech. Joe Biden forewent traditional holiday activities as an added precaution against COVID-19.  That same day, rapper Kanye West made a surprise announcement on Twitter that he, himself, was running for president.  In an interview with Forbes, West outlined his campaign.  He named Wyoming preacher Michelle Tidball as his running mate and introduced the Birthday Party as the vehicle for his run. His platform included anti-abortion views. West backed away from his previous support for President Trump, expressing disappointment at reports Trump hid in the White House basement during riots.  He leveled greater criticism at Biden, saying he was not "special" like himself, Trump, and former presidents Barack Obama and Bill Clinton. The interviewer questioned whether West was running to help President Trump defeat Biden. West did not deny the suggestion.  After the interview, a spokesman for West claimed West decided to drop out of the race.  However, subsequently, West officially filed with the FEC and secured a place on the ballot in Oklahoma with a US$35,000 payment.   Two other Independent presidential candidates also paid the fee to qualify for the Oklahoma ballot: child actor and entrepreneur Brock Pierce; plus pianist and pageant participant Jade Simmons.  West, in an interview with a Charleston, South Carolina radio station, floated Simmons as a potential running mate, arguing  Tidball could be used in a different capacity.  He identified fellow rapper Jay-Z as his ideal running mate.  West held his first campaign rally in Charleston, where he tearfully discussed potentially aborting his first child with wife Kim Kardashian, screaming "I almost killed my daughter!"  He proposed a US$1 million payment for those who give birth to children rather than aborting.  At this time, West's family reportedly expressed concerns about West's mental state.  The next day on Twitter West accused his wife of attempting to "lock me up" due to his comments at the rally.
In a July 9 speech in Pennsylvania, Biden introduced an economic plan called "Build Back Better" designed to reinvigorate the US economy in the aftermath of the coronavirus pandemic.  "Build Back Better" is, like Trump's "America First" plan, a form of economic nationalism.  "Build Back Better" calls for an increase in corporate taxes among economic incentives to "Buy American."  Biden claimed the plan would create five million US jobs. Trump encouraged public schools to reopen classes in-person at summer's end.  He threatened to withhold federal funds from districts that did not comply.  Trump later softened his stance, acknowledging that circumstances may require delaying some school reopenings.  In addition, for the first time, Trump was pictured wearing a face mask.  As cases of coronavirus increased in Florida, Trump cancelled the in-person Republican National Convention planned for Jacksonville.  Instead, like the Democratic National Convention  Republicans opted to hold their convention in a largely virtual format.  The Libertarian Party held the second half of its convention partially in-person in Orlando.  Although the party had already nominated the ticket of professor Jo Jorgensen for president and podcaster Spike Cohen for vice president at the virtual convention in May, party business still needed to be completed.  At the same time, the Green Party held its national convention virtually and nominated the ticket of party co-founder and union leader Howie Hawkins for president and truck driver Angela Walker for vice president.   
In mid-July, Trump commuted the prison sentence of confidante Roger Stone.  Stone had been found guilty of several crimes including false statements to investigators as part of Robert Mueller's investigation of Russian interference into the 2016 presidential election.  Trump called Stone's 40 month sentence "unjust."  The Biden campaign criticized the commutation as an abuse of power, pointing to the "ballot box" as the only way to stop Trump.  Several days later, Trump's niece Mary Trump released the tell-all book Too Much and Never Enough.  The book alleges, among other things, that Trump paid his friend Joe Shapiro to take the SAT for him before his admission to the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.  Shapiro's widow, former tennis player Pam Shriver, said her husband had told her Trump had not met Shapiro until being admitted to Wharton. The July 17 death of Democratic Congressman John Lewis, a prominent civil rights leader, had a major impact on the second half of the month.  The death brought the issue of civil rights back to the forefront of the campaign.  Lewis's colleague and leader of the Congressional Black Caucus, Congresswoman Karen Bass emerged as a significant contender to be Biden's running mate, joining Senators Kamala Harris, Elizabeth Warren, and Tammy Duckworth as potential candidates.  Trump did not attend Lewis's viewing or funeral.  Three former presidents including Barack Obama attended the funeral.  During his eulogy, Obama took a veiled shot at Trump for his attacks on mail-in voting, which critics, like Obama, have said amounted to voter suppression.  As the funeral progressed, Trump tweeted about possibly delaying the 2020 election due to his concerns about potential fraud from widespread mail-in balloting instituted due to the pandemic.  Biden attacked Trump for the tweet, claiming he used it to distract from Lewis's funeral.  In honor of Lewis, Biden said once in office he would immediately sign the renewal of the Voting Rights Act, renamed the John R. Lewis Voting Rights Act. On the day of the funeral, the co-chair of Black Voices for Trump and 2012 presidential candidate, Herman Cain, who, like Trump, ran for president on his business credentials, died from COVID-19.  He had attended Trump's Tulsa rally in June without a mask and first received hospital treatment for COVID-19 on July 1.  Trump lauded Cain as a "powerful voice of freedom." 
As July came to a close, Biden’s lead over Trump in the RealClearPolitics average slightly decreased, with Biden registering 49.9 percent to 42.1 percent for Trump. 
In July, the American Solidarity Party's ticket of retired teacher Brian T. Carroll for president and high school teacher Amar Patel for vice president, qualified, through petition, for ballot access in Illinois.  The party has expanded upon its ballot access from 2016 when its first ticket of Mike Maturen for president and Juan Muñoz for vice president appeared on the ballot only in Colorado, receiving a total of 6,776 votes, largely from write-ins in other states.
The party was founded in 2011 as the Christian Democratic Party. It changed to its current name ahead of the 2016 presidential election.  The party is based on Roman Catholic social teachings, advocating for social justice, environmentalism, and "a consistent life ethic"
including opposition to abortion, euthanasia, and capital punishment.  It has grown ahead of the 2020 presidential election.
Last September the party nominated Carroll for president over past Wikinews interviewee Joe Schriner and Joshua Perkins who also sought the party's nomination. Carroll selected Patel as his running mate. Patel, the son of Indian immigrants, is a high school teacher in the Chicago suburbs. He converted to Catholicism in 1993 and engaged with the Knights of Columbus. He became involved in the pro-life movement and, in association with that, the Republican Party, but grew disillusioned with the party over the war policies of the George W. Bush administration.  Eventually, Patel joined the Solidarity Party and rose to the position of chairman
Patel spoke with Wikinews about the campaign. He discussed how he became the vice presidential nominee of the Solidarity Party, what he sees as his duties and responsibilities as Carroll's running mate, and why voters should consider voting for the Carroll/Patel ticket.
((WSS))  Why did you agree to be the running mate of Brian Carroll?  How do you complement him on the ticket?
((WSS))  What duties and responsibilities come with being the vice presidential nominee of the Solidarity Party?
((WSS))   In what states is the Carroll/Patel ticket expected to be on the ballot? Why should voters in those states choose Carroll/Patel over other tickets?
The Bread and Roses Party ticket of University of Maryland research scholar Jerome Segal for president and filmmaker John de Graaf for vice president secured a spot on the ballot in Vermont in July. The party had already achieved qualified status in Maryland.  It is seeking access only in non-swing states where a particular major party is heavily expected to win.  In swing states, to avoid the spoiler effect, the party supports the Democratic Party's presidential ticket. 
Segal founded the Bread and Roses Party since the last presidential election.  Its name derives from the rallying call of immigrant textile workers in Massachusetts during a 1912 strike.  The party holds leftist positions including the right to employment, paid vacation, a shortened work week, and recognition of the State of Palestine.  In August 2019 the party nominated Segal for president. He announced de Graaf as his running mate this past April.  As a filmmaker, de Graaf has produced 40 documentaries.  In addition, he has co-written four books, and has written numerous articles for such publications as The Progressive and The New York Times.
With Wikinews, de Graaf discusses why he joined the Bread and Roses Party, what his role as vice presidential nominee entails, and why voters in non-swing states should choose the Segal/de Graaf ticket over other options on the ballot.
((WSS)) Why did you decide to run as the vice presidential nominee of the Bread and Roses Party?  How do you complement Jerome Segal on the ticket?
((WSS)) What duties and responsibilities do you have as the vice presidential nominee of the Bread and Roses Party?
((WSS)) In what states should voters expect to see the Segal/de Graaf ticket on the ballot?  Why should voters choose the Segal/de Graaf ticket over other tickets on the ballot?
The Unity Party of America ticket of Internet entrepreneur  Bill Hammons for president and engineer Eric Bodenstab for vice president secured ballot access in New Jersey in late July. The party had already attained ballot access in Colorado as a qualified minor party with at least 1,000 members. This is the first election cycle the party has fielded a presidential ticket.  
Hammons founded the Unity Party in 2004  and grew it through his 2008 and 2010 runs for US Congress, his 2014 and 2016 runs for US Senate, and his 2018 run for Governor of Colorado.  The party, which describes itself as centrist, advocates in its constitution for, among other things, a balanced budget amendment, elimination of the federal income tax, tax deduction for health care costs, a global minimum wage for fair trade, term limits for Congress and judges, lowering the voting age, DC statehood, and expanded space exploration. 
Bodenstab has previously run for city council and was the Unity Party's nominee for Lieutenant Governor of Colorado in 2018.  With Wikinews, Bodenstab discusses how he joined the Unity Party's presidential ticket, what constitutes his role as the party's vice presidential nominee, and why voters in the states the party has attained ballot access should consider casting their vote for the Hammons/Bodenstab ticket.
((WSS)) : Why did you join Bill Hammons on the Unity Party's 2020 presidential ticket?  How do you complement him on the ticket?
((WSS)) : What duties and responsibilities come with being the vice presidential nominee of the Unity Party?
((WSS)) : In what states should voters expect to see the Hammons/Bodenstab ticket on the ballot?  Why should these voters consider casting their vote for the Hammons/Bodenstab ticket over the other tickets on the ballot?

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On the campaign trail in the USA, July 2020