American Presidential Elections The American presidential election system has produced some interesting quirks, such as..., when s Jefferson and Burr receive the same number of electoral votes, thus forcing the House of Representatives to choose the president, or... 6, when Abraham Lincoln, earning just 4% of the popular vote, is the first elected president. He wins in a fourway race against Stephen Douglas and John Breckenridge (who split the ic vote) and John Bell, who took most of the border states in the election that precipitated the Civil War or... 24, 76,, and 2, years in which the persons (Jackson, Tilden, Cleveland, and Gore) receiving the most votes from citizens are denied the presidency because of the electoral college system, or... 92, when Teddy Roosevelt, frustrated with the lack of zeal of his handpicked successor, William Howard Taft, enters the race and basically hands it to ic candidate Woodrow Wilson, or... 972, when wins 49 out of 5 states, but is so fixated on his enemies that he allows practices to take place which cause him to be the first president to resign from office and the second of three presidents to have impeachment proceedings develop to a signficant level (The only two presidents formally impeached were Andrew Johnson and Bill Clinton. Both were acquitted in the Senate). 2, when the U.S. Supreme Court by a vote of 54 overrules a Florida State Supreme Court ruling requiring the manual recount of undercounted votes, thus allowing George W. Bush to win the 25 electoral votes needed and become president, even though his opponent Al Gore wins more votes nationwide (Gore's total in 2 is 542, greater than Bush's). Gore, of course, could have won the election outright if he had just carried his own state of Tennessee. Justice John Paul Stevens commented after the decision: "It is confidence in the men and women who administer the judicial system that is the true backbone of the rule of law. Time will one day heal the wound to that confidence that will be inflicted by today's decision. One thing, however, is certain. Although we may never know with complete certainty the identity of the winner of this year's Presidential election, the identity of the loser is perfectly clear. It is the nation's confidence in the judge as an impartial guardian of the rule of law." The purpose of this site is to give some basic statistical information to students about the 57 times Americans have chosen a president. If you find it helpful in any way, please let me know. Year Candidates Parties 79 792 796 George Washington s George Washington George Clinton s Thomas Jefferson Thomas Pinckney Aaron Burr Popular % of Popular Electoral 69 34 35 32 77 5 5 7 6 3 % of Vo Particip
4 2 6 2 24 2 32 36 4 4 45 44 4 5 53 52 56 s 4 Thomas Jefferson Aaron Burr 65 C.C. Pinckney 64 John Jay Thomas Jefferson 62 C.C. Pinckney 4 James Madison C.C. Pinckney George Clinton James Madison DeWitt Clinton James Monroe Rufus King James Monroe John Quincy Adams John Q.Adams William Crawford John Q. Adams John Floyd William Wirt W.H. Harrison Hugh White Daniel Webster W.P. Magnum W.H. Harrison J.G. Birney John Tyler took office on Harrison's James K. Polk J.G. Birney Zachary Taylor Lewis Cass Millard Fillmore took office on Taylor's Franklin Pierce Winfield Scott John P. Hale James Buchanan John C. Frémont Millard Fillmore National National National National AntiMason Liberty in name, but in principle Liberty FreeSoil FreeSoil American,74 53,544 46,6 47,36 647,26 5,64 67,52 53,9 33, 765,43 9,795,274,624,27,7 7,69,33,464,3,97 62,3,36,967,222,342 29,263,6,7,35,453 55,25,32,955,339,932 7, 3.5 43. 3. 3.2 56. 44. 55. 42.4 5.9 49. 53. 46.9 49.6 4. 2.3 47.4 42.5. 5.9 44. 5. 45.3 33. 2.6 22 47 6 2 9 3 34 23 4 99 4 37 7 3 49 7 7 26 4 234 6 7 5 63 27 254 42 74 4 26.9 57.6 55.4 57..2 7.9 72.7 69.6 7.9
6 64 65 69 6 72 76 5 4 92 96 9 Abraham Lincoln Stephen Douglas John Breckenridge John Bell Abraham Lincoln George McClellan Andrew Johnson took office on Lincoln's Ulysses S. Grant Horatio Seymour Ulysses S. Grant Horace Greeley Rutherford B. Hayes Samuel Tilden James Garfield Winfield S. Hancock Chester Arthur took office on Garfield's James G. Blaine Benjamin Harrison Benjamin Harrison James B. Weaver William McKinley William J. Bryan William McKinley William J. Bryan 9 Theodore Roosevelt took office on McKinley's Theodore Roosevelt 94 Alton B. Parker William H. Taft 9 William J. Bryan Woodrow Wilson Theodore Roosevelt 92 William H. Taft Woodrow Wilson 96 Charles E. Hughes A.L. Benson Warren Harding 92 James M. Cox 923 Calvin Coolidge took office on Harding's People's 2,23,655,32,73 4,356 2,96 2,23,655,5,237 3,2,33 2,,249 3,7,32 2,34,25 4,36,29 4,3, 4,454,46 4,444,952 4,74,96 4,5,9 5,439,53 5,54,39 5,556,9 5,76,,4,2 7,4,779 6,52,925 7,27,923 6,52,925 7,623,46 5,77,9 42,23 7,67,9 6,49,4 42,793 6,293,454 4,9,53 3,44,9 9,672 9,29,66,53,22 55,3 6,52,2 9,47,353 99,799 39. 29.5. 2.6 55. 45. 52.7 47.3 55.6 43.9 4. 5. 4.5 4. 4.5 4.2 47.9 4.6 46. 43..5 5. 47.7 5.7 45.5 57.9 37.6 3. 5.6 43. 2. 4.9 27.4 23.2 6. 49.4 46.2 3.2 6.4 34.2 3.4 2 72 39 22 2 24 26 66 5 4 24 55 2 233 3 277 45 22 27 76 292 55 336 4 32 62 435 277 254 44 27.2. 7. 7.3. 79.4 77.5 79.3 74.7 79.3.2 65.2 65.4 5. 6.6 49.2
924 92 932 936 94 944 94 952 956 96 Calvin Coolidge John W. Davis Robert M. LaFollette Herbert Hoover Alfred Smith Norman Thomas Herbert Hoover Norman Thomas Alfred M. Landon William Lemke Wendell Wilkie Thomas E. Dewey Harry S Truman Thomas E. Dewey Strom Thurmond Henry A. Wallace Dwight Eisenhower Adlai Stevenson Dwight Eisenhower Adlai Stevenson John F. Kennedy StatesRights Demo. 5,725,6,36,53 4,22,56 2,39,3 5,6,443 267,35 22,2,57 5,76,4,95 27,75,7 6,679,53 2,479 27,244,6 22,35,9 25,62,54 22,6,25 24,5,695 2,969,7,69,2,56,3 33,936,252 27,34,992 35,575,423 26,33,66 34,227,96 34,,546 54. 2. 6.6 5.2 4.9.7 57.4 39.7 2.2 6. 36.5.9 54. 44. 53.5 46. 49.5 45. 2.4 2.4 55. 44.4 57.6 42. 49.9 49.6 32 36 3 444 57 472 523 449 2 432 99 34 9 3 442 9 457 33 5 4.9 56.9 56.9 6 62.5 55.9 53 63.3 6.6 62. 964 96 972 974 976 9 94 9 992 Lyndon Johnson Barry Goldwater Hubert Humphrey George Wallace George McGovern Gerald Ford took office on Nixon's resignation Jimmy Carter Gerald Ford Ronald Reagan Jimmy Carter John P. Anderson Ed Clark Ronald Reagan Walter Mondale George Bush Michael Dukakis Bill Clinton George Bush H. Ross Perot American Ind. Libertarian 43,26,56 27,76,799 3,77,237 3,27,533 9,96,4 47,69,9 29,7,33 4,2,57 39,47,63,575,4 43,9,2 35,43,2 5,79,722 92, 54,455,75 37,577,5 4,6, 4,9, 43,72,375 3,67,46 9,237,247 6. 3.5 43.4 42.7 3.5 6.7 37.5 5. 47.9 2. 5.7 4. 6.6.. 4. 53.4 45.6 43 3 9 46 52 3 9 46 52 7 297 24 49 49 525 3 426 37 6 6.7 6.6 55.2 53.5 52.6 53.3 57.4 55
Bill Clinton 996 Bob Dole H. Ross Perot 2 George W. Bush Al Gore Ralph Nader 24 George W. Bush John Kerry Ralph Nader Green 45,, 37,6,37,5,42 5,456,67 5,996,64 2,64,,65,29 56,5,9 44,25 5 4 47. 4.39 2.72 5 4.3 379 27 266* 26 252 4. 5.2 2 Barack Obama John McCain 22 Barack Obama Mitt Romney 66,2,23 5,343,67 62,6,77,36,77 53 46 5 4 365 332 26 64** 5 Notes: Electors are not required to vote for a candidate. Several times electors, as they have met at their state capitals following the November elections, have cast protest votes for individuals. * One elector abstained in 2. **Barack Obama achieved the highest total votes (66. million) as 64% of the American electorate voted, the highest number since 9. Basic Source: American History by Richard Current, et al. New York: Knopf.