President Taft nearly faced rejection by the AU amid the troubles facing his presidency, though by the final ballot he edged past Dwight Eisenhower after rallying enough undecided conservative delegates to his side. This lucky break allowed Taft to make history by becoming his party's nominee for four consecutive elections, molding the party in a more conservative bent along the way. To prevent a mass revolt among the delegates who were entirely fed up with the president by this point, Taft begrudgingly agreed to have Eisenhower be his running mate, who was easily nominated for the spot. The fight for the nomination was also spirited for the WP, coming down to a showdown between two rising stars in the Senate: Hubert Humphrey of Minnesota and Estes Kefauver of Tennessee. Kefauver managed to capture the momentum and acquire enough delegates to put him over the top, barely winning over Humphrey, whom many believed to be the long-time favorite. Kefauver's running mate would be Senator Paul Douglas, someone of the same populist stripe and who was an early supporter of Kefauver's candidacy.
After a brief sense of stability following WWII, uncertainty has now clouded the public's collective mind at home and abroad. Taft is attempting to steer the tides back in his favor, calling for a proper end to the Korean War and focusing on a foreign policy that would be more aggressive against communism. On domestic issues, Taft is seeking to lower income taxes and wants to roll back nationalization passed under past administrations. The president has also been receptive toward civil rights, having been outspoken against the Ku Klux Klan in the past, though civil rights reforms aren't as likely to be a major tenet of his presidency. Kefauver is running on a thoroughly liberal, anti-corruption platform that he hopes will resonate with Americans frustrated with Taft. The issue that he is most passionate about is civil rights, saying that "the opportunity for equality is now," and is in support of desegregating schools and communities alike across the country. Other notable planks in Kefauver's platform include sweeping new consumer protection laws, a desire for more trust-busting, and increased tariffs on foreign competitors.
When did the Korean War start ITTL?