Presidential Elections

In 1792, George Washington was unanimously elected the first president of the United States. Since then, presidential campaigns and elections have evolved into a series of fiercely fought, and sometimes controversial, contests. Every four years, from caucuses and primaries to conventions and ballots, candidates takes to the streets, airwaves and internet to make their case.

This Day in History

Sep 9

Presidential

Cleveland baby born in White House, 1893

On this day in 1893, President Grover Cleveland’s wife Frances becomes the first first lady to give birth in the White House when the couple’s daug...

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Contents

1789-1816

  • 1789  George Washington, unopposed
  • 1792  George Washington, unopposed
  • 1796  John Adams vs. Thomas Jefferson
  • 1800  John Adams vs. Thomas Jefferson
  • 1804  Thomas Jefferson vs. Charles Pinckney
  • 1808  James Madison vs. Charles Pinckney
  • 1812  James Madison vs. DeWitt Clinton
  • 1816  James Monroe vs. Rufus King

1820-1848

  • 1820  James Monroe, unopposed
  • 1824  John Quincy Adams vs. Henry Clay vs. Adrew Jackson vs. William Crawford
  • 1828  John Quincy Adams vs. Andrew Jackson
  • 1832  Andrew Jackson vs. Henry Clay vs. William Wirt
  • 1836  Martin Van Buren vs. Daniel Webster vs. Hugh White
  • 1840  Martin Van Buen vs. William Henry Harrison
  • 1844  James K. Polk vs. Henry Clay vs. James Birney
  • 1848  Zachary Taylor vs. Martin Van Buren vs. Lewis Cass

1852-1880

  • 1852  Franklin Pierce vs. Winfield Scott vs. John Pitale
  • 1856  Millard Fillmore vs. James Buchanan vs. John C. Fremont
  • 1860  Abraham Lincoln vs. Stephen Douglas vs. John C. Breckingridge vs. John Bell
  • 1864  Abraham Lincoln vs. George B. McClellan
  • 1868  Ulysses S. Grant vs. Horace Seymour
  • 1872  Ulysses S. Grant vs. Horace Greeley
  • 1876  Rutherford B. Hayes vs. Samuel J. Tilden
  • 1880  James Garfield vs. Winfield Scott Hancock

1884-1912

  • 1884  James G. Blaine vs. Grover Cleveland
  • 1888  Grover Cleveland vs. Benjamin Harrison
  • 1892  Benjamin Harrison vs. Grover Cleveland vs. James B. Weaver
  • 1896  William McKinley vs. William Jennings Bryan vs. Thomas Watson vs. John Palmer
  • 1900  William McKinley vs. William Jennings Bryan
  • 1904  Theodore Roosevelt vs. Alton Parker
  • 1908  William Howard Taft vs. William Jennings Bryan
  • 1912  William Howard Taft vs. Woodrow Wilson vs. Theodore Roosevelt vs. Eugene V. Debs

1916-1944

  • 1916  Woodrow Wilson vs. Charles Evans Hughes
  • 1920  Warren G. Harding vs. James M. Cox vs. Eugene V. Debs
  • 1924  Calvin Coolidge vs. Robert M. LaFollette vs. Burton K. Wheeler vs. John W. Davis
  • 1928  Herbert Hoover vs. Alfred E. Smith
  • 1932  Herbert Hoover vs. Frankin D. Roosevelt
  • 1936  Franklin D. Roosevelt vs. Alfred M. Landon
  • 1940  Franklin D. Roosevelt vs. Wendall L. Wilkie
  • 1944  Franklin D. Roosevelt vs. Thomas E. Dewey

1948-1976

  • 1948  Harry Truman vs. Thomas E. Dewey vs. Strom Thurmond vs. Henry Wallace
  • 1952  Dwight Eisenhower vs. Adlai E. Stevenson
  • 1956  Dwight Eisenjower vs. Adlai E. Stevenson
  • 1960  John F. Kennedy vs. Richard M. Nixon
  • 1964  Lyndon B. Johnson vs. Barry Goldwater
  • 1968  Richard M. Nixon vs. Hubert M. Humphrey vs. George Wallace
  • 1972  Richard M. Nixon vs. George M. McGovern
  • 1976  Gerald R. Ford vs. James Carter

1980-2008

  • 1980  James Carter vs. Ronald W. Reagan vs. John B. Anderson
  • 1984  Ronald W. Reagan vs. Walter P. Mondale
  • 1988  George H.W. Bush vs. Michael Dukakis
  • 1992  Geore H.W. Bush vs. William J. Clinton vs. H. Ross Perot
  • 1996  William J. Clinton vs. Robert Dole vs. H. Ross Perot vs. Ralph Nader
  • 2000  Albert Gore vs. George W. Bush vs. Ralph Nader
  • 2004  George W. Bush vs. John F. Kerry
  • 2008  John M. McCain vs. Barack H. Obama

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