Ryan Binkley

Ryan Binkley (born November 19, 1967) is an American pastor, businessman and politician. He is the founder and CEO of the Generational Equity Group since 2006. He is also the co-founder and lead pastor of the Create Church in Richardson, Texas.

In August 2023, Binkley announced his candidacy for President of the United States in the 2024 election. He ended his campaign in late February 2024.

Early life
Binkley was born in Columbus, Georgia. He has a Bachelor of Business Administration in Finance and Marketing from the University of Texas at Austin McCombs School of Business. He also has a Master of Business Administration from Southern Methodist University's Cox School of Business. 

Binkley worked for Procter & Gamble and Boston Scientific before founding his own consulting firm, the Generational Equity Group, in 2006.

2024 presidential campaign

A member of the Republican Party, Binkley announced in April 2023 that he would seek the party's nomination for the 2024 United States presidential election. Binkley said he was called to run for president by God. He said a message came through to him about seven years ago telling him that the nation is in trouble. Binkley has built his campaign around "solutions for the country" criticizing both Republicans and Democrats for being overly partisan. His four major planks include: balancing the federal budget, driving down health care costs, reaching across the aisle to reform immigration policy and "revitalizing education" to encourage community involvement. Binkley has branded himself as a "uniter" for the Republican Party that can bridge the pro and anti-Trump divide.

Binkley has been centering his campaign in Iowa, where the first caucus is held, speaking with the local media, and buying $250,000 in radio advertisements. He also held a town hall meeting in Waterloo, Iowa where he said the Republican values touted in the 2022 United States elections didn't resonate with voters and reiterating that most Americans support the status quo, and that national debt and the economy were more important than social issues. He is considered a "longshot" for the nomination and has been having trouble differentiating himself from other candidates while on the campaign trail in Iowa.
He spoke at the Republican Party of Iowa's Lincoln Dinner on July 28, an important platform for candidates in the state.

Binkley has consistently visited Iowa and planned to visit New Hampshire and either Texas or South Carolina, trying to collect donors to be able to qualify for the first Republican debate to be held on August 23, 2023, in Milwaukee.

Binkley has been largely self-funding his campaign, while also appealing for donors to help him reach the donor criteria required to participate in the 2024 RNC-sanctioned debates. Binkley met the donor threshold on August 20, but has only one qualifying poll out of the four required to participate. He ultimately did not qualify for the first debate.

Binkley said that he was continuing his candidacy through the caucuses. He was the first candidate to visit every county in Iowa, dubbed "the full Grassley"

Binkley received less than 800 votes in the 2024 Iowa Caucuses, after spending over $3,000,000 (including $500,000 in the last two weeks), which is a cost per vote average of over $4,000 per vote. His vote total was surprising. Even as a low-polling candidate, Binkley was able to earn more votes than former Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson.

He suspended his campaign on the day of the Michigan primary and endorsed Trump on February 27, 2024.

Personal life
His wife, Ellie, is from South Korea and the couple have five children.

References

Category:1967 births
Category:Living people
Category:Businesspeople from Georgia (U.S. state)
Category:Businesspeople from Texas
Category:Politicians from Georgia (U.S. state)
Category:Politicians from Texas
Category:Republican Party (United States) politicians
Category:2024 United States presidential candidates
Category:People from Columbus, Georgia