Though the candidates are the same as last time, the 2024 US presidential election promises to be unique in other ways — pitting two men facing challenges unprecedented in the 235-year history of US democracy.

Joe Biden was already fending off misgivings about his advanced years in 2020, but America’s oldest-ever president will have four more candles on his birthday cake this November.

And Donald Trump, who was facing scrutiny during the last election over his conduct before and during his term in office, now has four criminal indictments to his name — unprecedented for a US president.

There isn’t much 81-year-old Biden can do about his age, except crack the occasional joke and point out that his opponent is less than four years younger.

But Trump has tried to leverage his legal woes — treating his court appearances as if they were campaign rallies, complete with defiant, grievance-laden speeches before the media and cheering fans.

The speeches themselves aren’t exactly presidential — it’s hard to imagine Abraham Lincoln lashing out at judges or smearing political opponents as “Marxist thugs” — but Trump’s loyal base enjoys his proclivity for incendiary rhetoric and personal grievance.