Dead Presidents

I’m pretty sure that I don’t remember what it’s like to not live in the midst of an all-encompassing political campaign.  Then again, considering how campaigns seem to begin earlier and earlier in 21st Century American politics, I wouldn’t be surprised if the midterm cycle kicks off this afternoon.

(P.S.: I better not see stories about potential 2016 Presidential candidates until AT LEAST Inauguration Day.  In a perfect world, we’d be safe from starting that discussion until late-2014.)

While a stint in the United States House of Representatives is a fairly common job that you will find on the resumes of our Presidents and Vice Presidents, it usually is not a stepping stone directly into the Presidency or Vice Presidency.  In fact, if the Republican ticket featuring Mitt Romney and Wisconsin Congressman Paul Ryan win in November, Ryan will be the first incumbent member of the House in 80 years to take office as President or Vice President.

Only one incumbent House member has been elected President: James Garfield of Ohio in 1880.  Five incumbent members of the House of Representatives have been elected Vice President: Richard Mentor Johnson of Kentucky (1836), Schuyler Colfax of Indiana (1868), William Almon Wheeler of New York (1876), James Schoolcraft Sherman of New York (1908), and John Nance Garner of Texas (1932).  Colfax and Garner are also the only incumbent Speakers of the House to be elected President or Vice President.

Overall, 18 Presidents served in the U.S. House of Representatives at one point in their career, including James K. Polk, who remains the only Speaker of the House to serve as President.  John Quincy Adams served in the House AFTER he was President.  John Tyler, who served in the U.S. House early in his career, was elected to the Confederate House of Representatives shortly before his death.

Although we haven’t had an incumbent House member elected Vice President since 1932, Paul Ryan might take some comfort in the fact that, throughout our history, a whopping 24 Vice Presidents served in the House at some point in their lives (25 if you count Daniel D. Tompkins who was elected to the House but resigned before taking office in order to accept an appointment to the New York State Supreme Court).  Not only that, but four of our last five Vice Presidents (Bush 41, Quayle, Gore, and Cheney) were House alumni.

This is the fourth and final part of our look at major party tickets for President and Vice President since the enactment of the Twelfth Amendment.  Here is Part I.  Here is Part II.  Here is Part III.

•1960: Kennedy/Johnson defeated Nixon/Lodge
Democratic Party ticket
-John F. Kennedy (MA), 43 years old, incumbent U.S. Senator from Massachusetts
-Lyndon B. Johnson (TX), 52 years old, incumbent U.S. Senator from Texas/Senate Majority Leader

Republican Party ticket
-Richard Nixon (CA), 47 years old, incumbent Vice President of the United States
-Henry Cabot Lodge, Jr. (MA), 58 years old, U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations

•1964: Johnson/Humphrey defeated Goldwater/Miller
Democratic Party ticket
-Lyndon B. Johnson (TX), 56 years old, incumbent President of the United States
-Hubert H. Humphrey (MN), 53 years old, incumbent U.S. Senator from Minnesota

Republican Party ticket
-Barry Goldwater (AZ), 55 years old, incumbent U.S. Senator from Arizona
-William E. Miller (NY), 50 years old, incumbent U.S. Representative from New York

•1968: Nixon/Agnew defeated Humphrey/Muskie and Wallace/Lemay
Republican Party ticket
-Richard Nixon (CA), 55 years old, former Vice President of the United States/1960 Republican Presidential nominee
-Spiro Agnew (MD), 49 years old, incumbent Governor of Maryland

Democratic Party ticket
-Hubert H. Humphrey (MN), 57 years old, incumbent Vice President of the United States
-Edmund Muskie (ME), 54 years old, incumbent U.S. Senator from Maine

American Independent Party ticket
-George C. Wallace (AL), 49 years old, former Governor of Alabama
-Curtis LeMay (OH), 61 years old, United States Air Force General

•1972: Nixon/Agnew defeated McGovern/Shriver
Republican Party ticket
-Richard Nixon (CA), 59 years old, incumbent President of the United States
-Spiro Agnew (MD), 53 years old, incumbent Vice President of the United States

Democratic Party ticket
-George S. McGovern (SD), 50 years old, incumbent U.S. Senator from South Dakota
-Sargent Shriver (MD), 56 years old, diplomat/former Peace Corps director
[McGovern originally picked Senator Thomas Eagleton of Missouri as his running mate but dumped him from the ticket in favor of Shriver when it was revealed that Eagleton had been treated for mental illness with electroshock therapy.]

•1976: Carter/Mondale defeated Ford/Dole
Democratic Party ticket
-Jimmy Carter (GA), 52 years old, former Governor of Georgia
-Walter Mondale (MN), 48 years old, incumbent U.S. Senator from Minnesota

Republican Party ticket
-Gerald R. Ford (MI), 63 years old, incumbent President of the United States
-Bob Dole (KS), 53 years old, incumbent U.S. Senator from Kansas

•1980: Reagan/Bush defeated Carter/Mondale
Republican Party ticket
-Ronald Reagan (CA), 69 years old, former Governor of California
-George H.W. Bush (TX), 56 years old, former CIA Director/diplomat/former U.S. Representative from Texas

Democratic Party ticket
-Jimmy Carter (GA), 56 years old, incumbent President of the United States
-Walter Mondale (MN), 52 years old, incumbent Vice President of the United States

•1984: Reagan/Bush defeated Mondale/Ferraro
Republican Party ticket
-Ronald Reagan (CA), 73 years old, incumbent President of the United States
-George H.W. Bush (TX), 60 years old, incumbent Vice President of the United States

Democratic Party ticket
-Walter Mondale (MN), 56 years old, former Vice President of the United States
-Geraldine Ferraro (NY), 49 years old, incumbent U.S. Representative from New York

•1988: Bush/Quayle defeated Dukakis/Bentsen
Republican Party ticket
-George H.W. Bush (TX), 64 years old, incumbent Vice President of the United States
-Dan Quayle (IN), 41 years old, incumbent U.S. Senator from Indiana

Democratic Party ticket
-Michael Dukakis (MA), 55 years old, incumbent Governor of Massachusetts
-Lloyd Bentsen (TX), 67 years old, incumbent U.S. Senator from Texas

•1992: Clinton/Gore defeated Bush/Quayle and Perot/Stockdale
Democratic Party ticket
-Bill Clinton (AR), 46 years old, incumbent Governor of Arkansas
-Al Gore (TN), 44 years old, incumbent U.S. Senator from Tennessee

Republican Party ticket
-George H.W. Bush (TX), 68 years old, incumbent President of the United States
-Dan Quayle (IN), 45 years old, incumbent Vice President of the United States

Independent ticket
-Ross Perot (TX), 62 years old, businessman
-James Stockdale (CA), 68 years old, United States Navy Admiral/Medal of Honor recipient

•1996: Clinton/Gore defeated Dole/Kemp and Perot/Choate
Democratic Party ticket
-Bill Clinton (AR), 50 years old, incumbent President of the United States
-Al Gore (TN), 48 years old, incumbent Vice President of the United States

Republican Party ticket
-Bob Dole (KS), 73 years old, incumbent U.S. Senator from Kansas/Senate Majority Leader
-Jack Kemp (NY), 61 years old, former U.S. Secretary of Housing and Urban Development/former U.S. Representative from New York

Reform Party ticket
-Ross Perot (TX), 66 years old, businessman/1996 Independent Presidential candidate
-Pat Choate (OK), 55 years old, economist

•2000: Bush/Cheney defeated Gore/Lieberman
Republican Party ticket
-George W. Bush (TX), 54 years old, incumbent Governor of Texas
-Dick Cheney (WY), 59 years old, former U.S. Secretary of Defense

Democratic Party ticket
-Al Gore (TN), 52 years old, incumbent Vice President of the United States
-Joe Lieberman (CT), 58 years old, incumbent U.S. Senator from Connecticut

•2004: Bush/Cheney defeated Kerry/Edwards
Republican Party ticket
-George W. Bush (TX), 58 years old, incumbent President of the United States
-Dick Cheney (WY), 63 years old, incumbent Vice President of the United States

Democratic Party ticket
-John Kerry (MA), 60 years old, incumbent U.S. Senator from Massachusetts
-John Edwards (NC), 51 years old, incumbent U.S. Senator from North Carolina

•2008: Obama/Biden defeated McCain/Palin
Democratic Party ticket
-Barack Obama (IL), 47 years old, incumbent U.S. Senator from Illinois
-Joe Biden (DE), 65 years old, incumbent U.S. Senator from Delaware

Republican Party ticket
-John McCain (AZ), 72 years old, incumbent U.S. Senator from Arizona
-Sarah Palin (AK), 44 years old, incumbent Governor of Alaska

•2012: Obama/Biden vs. Romney/Ryan (Election Day: November 6, 2012)
Democratic Party ticket
-Barack Obama (IL), 51 years old, incumbent President of the United States
-Joe Biden (DE), 69 years old, incumbent Vice President of the United States

Republican Party ticket
-Mitt Romney (MA), 65 years old, former Governor of Massachusetts/businessman
-Paul Ryan (WI), 42 years old, incumbent U.S. Representative from Wisconsin

Part III of our look at the major party tickets for President and Vice President since the enactment of the Twelfth Amendment.  Here is Part I, covering 1804-1832.  For Part II, covering 1836-1892, click here.

•1896: McKinley/Hobart defeated Bryan/Sewall
Republican Party ticket
-William McKinley (OH), 53 years old, Governor of Ohio
-Garret A. Hobart (NJ), 52 years old, Vice Chairman of the Republican National Committee/former president of the New Jersey State Senate

Democratic/Populist Party ticket
-William Jennings Bryan (NE), 36 years old, former U.S. Representative from Nebraska
-Arthur Sewall (ME), 60 years old, shipbuilder/bank president
[Bryan was nominated as President by the Democrats and the Populist Party; Sewall was the Democratic Vice Presidential candidate and the Populist Party nominated former U.S. Representative Thomas E. Watson of Georgia for VP.]

•1900: McKinley/Roosevelt defeated Bryan/Stevenson
Republican Party ticket
-William McKinley (OH), 57 years old, incumbent President of the United States
-Theodore Roosevelt (NY), 42 years old, incumbent Governor of New York

Democratic Party ticket
-William Jennings Bryan (NE), 40 years old, 1896 Democratic Presidential nominee
-Adlai E. Stevenson (IL), 65 years old, former Vice President of the United States

•1904: Roosevelt/Fairbanks defeated Parker/Davis
Republican Party ticket
-Theodore Roosevelt (NY), 46 years old, incumbent President of the United States
-Charles Warren Fairbanks (IN), 52 years old, incumbent U.S. Senator from Indiana

Democratic Party ticket
-Alton B. Parker (NY), 52 years old, Chief Judge of the New York Court of Appeals
-Henry G. Davis (WV), 80 years old, former U.S. Senator from West Virginia

•1908: Taft/Sherman defeated Bryan/Kern
Republican Party ticket
-William Howard Taft (OH), 51 years old, U.S. Secretary of War
-James S. Sherman (NY), 53 years old, incumbent U.S. Representative from New York

Democratic Party ticket
-William Jennings Bryan (NE), 48 years old, 1896 and 1900 Democratic Presidential nominee
-John W. Kern (IN), 59 years old, former Indiana State Senator

•1912: Wilson/Marshall defeated Roosevelt/Johnson and Taft/Sherman
Democratic Party ticket
-Woodrow Wilson (NJ), 55 years old, incumbent Governor of New Jersey
-Thomas Riley Marshall (IN), 58 years old, incumbent Governor of Indiana

Progressive/Bull Moose Party ticket
-Theodore Roosevelt (NY), 54 years old, former President of the United States
-Hiram Johnson (CA), 46 years old, incumbent Governor of California

Republican Party ticket
-William Howard Taft (OH), 55 years old, incumbent President of the United States
-James S. Sherman (NY), 57 years old, incumbent Vice President of the United States
[Vice President Sherman died a few days before Election Day, so his Electoral College votes went to Columbia University president Nicholas Murray Butler of New York.]

•1916: Wilson/Marshall defeated Hughes/Fairbanks
Democratic Party ticket
-Woodrow Wilson (NJ), 59 years old, incumbent President of the United States
-Thomas Riley Marshall (IN), 62 years old, incumbent Vice President of the United States

Republican Party ticket
-Charles Evans Hughes (NY), 54 years old, Associate Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court/former Governor of New York
-Charles Warren Fairbanks (IN), 64 years old, former Vice President of the United States

•1920: Harding/Coolidge defeated Cox/Roosevelt
Republican Party ticket
-Warren G. Harding (OH), 55 years old, incumbent U.S. Senator from Ohio
-Calvin Coolidge (MA), 48 years old, incumbent Governor of Massachusetts

Democratic Party ticket
-James M. Cox (OH), 50 years old, incumbent Governor of Ohio
-Franklin D. Roosevelt (NY), 38 years old, Assistant Secretary of the U.S. Navy

•1924: Coolidge/Dawes defeated Davis/Bryan and La Follette/Wheeler
Republican Party ticket
-Calvin Coolidge (MA), 52 years old, incumbent President of the United States
-Charles Gates Dawes (IL), 59 years old, diplomat/Member of the Allied Reparations Commission/former Brigadier General of the United States Army

Democratic Party ticket
-John W. Davis (WV), 51 years old, former U.S. Ambassador to Great Britain/American Bar Association president
-Charles W. Bryan (NE), incumbent Governor of Nebraska

Progressive Party ticket
-Robert M. La Follette, Sr. (WI), 69 years old, incumbent U.S. Senator from Wisconsin
-Burton K. Wheeler (MT), 42 years old, incumbent U.S. Senator from Montana

•1928: Hoover/Curtis defeated Smith/Robinson
Republican Party ticket
-Herbert Hoover (CA), 54 years old, U.S. Secretary of Commerce
-Charles Curtis (KS), 68 years old, incumbent U.S. Senator from Kansas

Democratic Party ticket
-Alfred E. Smith (NY), 54 years old, incumbent Governor of New York
-Joseph T. Robinson (AR), 56 years old, incumbent U.S. Senator from Arkansas

•1932: Roosevelt/Garner defeated Hoover/Curtis
Democratic Party ticket
-Franklin D. Roosevelt (NY), 50 years old, incumbent Governor of New York
-John Nance Garner (TX), 63 years old, incumbent Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives

Republican Party ticket
-Herbert Hoover (CA), 58 years old, incumbent President of the United States
-Charles Curtis (KS), 72 years old, incumbent Vice President of the United States

•1936: Roosevelt/Garner defeated Landon/Knox
Democratic Party ticket
-Franklin D. Roosevelt (NY), 54 years old, incumbent President of the United States
-John Nance Garner (TX), 67 years old, incumbent Vice President of the United States

Republican Party ticket
-Alf Landon (KS), 49 years old, incumbent Governor of Kansas
-Frank Knox (IL), 62 years old, Publisher of the Chicago Daily News

•1940: Roosevelt/Wallace defeated Willkie/McNary
Democratic Party ticket
-Franklin D. Roosevelt (NY), 58 years old, incumbent President of the United States
-Henry A. Wallace (IA), 52 years old, U.S. Secretary of Agriculture

Republican Party ticket
-Wendell L. Willkie (IN), 48 years old, lawyer
-Charles L. McNary (OR), 66 years old, incumbent U.S. Senator from Oregon

•1944: Roosevelt/Truman defeated Dewey/Bricker
Democratic Party ticket
-Franklin D. Roosevelt (NY), 62 years old, incumbent President of the United States
-Harry S. Truman (MO), 60 years old, incumbent U.S. Senator from Missouri

Republican Party ticket
-Thomas E. Dewey (NY), 42 years old, incumbent Governor of New York
-John W. Bricker (OH), 51 years old, incumbent Governor of Ohio

•1948: Truman/Barkley defeated Dewey/Warren and Thurmond/Wright
Democratic Party ticket
-Harry S. Truman (MO), 64 years old, incumbent President of the United States
-Alben W. Barkley (KY), 70 years old, incumbent U.S. Senator from Kentucky

Republican Party ticket
-Thomas E. Dewey (NY), 46 years old, incumbent Governor of New York
-Earl Warren (CA), 57 years old, incumbent Governor of California

States’ Rights/Dixiecrat ticket
-Strom Thurmond (SC), 45 years old, incumbent Governor of South Carolina
-Fielding L. Wright (MS), 53 years old, incumbent Governor of Mississippi

•1952: Eisenhower/Nixon defeated Stevenson/Sparkman
Republican Party ticket
-Dwight D. Eisenhower (NY), 62 years old, General of the Army/Supreme Allied Commander of NATO
-Richard Nixon (CA), 39 years old, U.S. Senator from California

Democratic Party ticket
-Adlai E. Stevenson II (IL), 52 years old, incumbent Governor of Illinois
-John Sparkman (AL), 52 years old, incumbent U.S. Senator from Alabama

•1956: Eisenhower/Nixon defeated Stevenson/Kefauver
Republican Party ticket
-Dwight D. Eisenhower (NY), 66 years old, incumbent President of the United States
-Richard Nixon (CA), 43 years old, incumbent Vice President of the United States

Democratic Party ticket
-Adlai E. Stevenson II (IL), 56 years old, 1956 Democratic Presidential nominee/former Governor of Illinois
-Estes Kefauver (TN), 53 years old, incumbent U.S. Senator from Tennessee

Continuing our look at the major party tickets for President and Vice President since the enactment of the Twelfth Amendment to the Constitution in 1804.  For Part I, covering 1804-1832, go here.

•1836: Van Buren/Johnson defeated Harrison/Granger and White/Tyler
[No Vice Presidential candidate won the necessary Electoral College votes for election, so the Vice Presidency was decided by the U.S. Senate]
Democratic Party ticket
-Martin Van Buren (NY), 54 years old, incumbent Vice President of the United States
-Richard M. Johnson (KY), 56 years old, incumbent U.S. Representative from Kentucky

Whig Party ticket
-William Henry Harrison (OH), 63 years old, former soldier (Major General, U.S. Army)/diplomat/territorial politician
-Francis Granger (NY), 44 years old, incumbent member of the New York State Assembly

Whig Party ticket
-Hugh Lawson White (TN), 63 years old, incumbent U.S. Senator from Tennessee
-John Tyler (VA), 46 years old, U.S. Senator from Virginia

•1840: Harrison/Tyler defeated Van Buren/Johnson
Whig Party ticket
-William Henry Harrison (OH), 67 years old, former soldier (Major General, U.S. Army)/diplomat/territorial politician
-John Tyler (VA), 50 years old, Member of the Virginia House of Delegates

Democratic Party ticket
-Martin Van Buren (NY), 58 years old, incumbent President of the United States
[The Democratic Party did not nominated a Vice Presidential candidate in 1840.  Incumbent Vice President Richard M. Johnson was the de facto nominee, but Littleton Tazewell of Virginia and James K. Polk of Tennessee also received Vice Presidential Electoral votes.]

•1844: Polk/Dallas defeated Clay/Frelinghuysen
Democratic Party ticket
-James Knox Polk (TN), 49 years old, former Governor of Tennessee
-George Mifflin Dallas (PA), 52 years old, former U.S. Minister to Russia

Whig Party ticket
-Henry Clay (KY), 67 years old, former U.S. Senator from Kentucky
-Theodore Frelinghuysen (NJ), 57 years old, Chancellor of New York University

•1848: Taylor/Fillmore defeated Cass/Butler and Van Buren/Adams
Whig Party ticket
-Zachary Taylor (LA), 63 years old, Major General, United States Army
-Millard Fillmore (NY), 48 years old, Comptroller of New York State/former U.S. Representative from New York

Democratic Party ticket
-Lewis Cass (MI), 66 years old, U.S. Senator from Michigan
-William O. Butler (KY), 57 years old, Major General, United States Army

Free Soil Party ticket
-Martin Van Buren (NY), 65 years old, former President of the United States
-Charles Francis Adams (MA), 41 years old, former politician/Editor of the Boston Whig

•1852: Pierce/King defeated Scott/Graham
Democratic Party ticket
-Franklin Pierce (NH), 47 years old, Brigadier General of the U.S. Army/former U.S. Senator from New Hampshire
-William Rufus DeVane King (AL), 66 years old, incumbent U.S. Senator from Alabama and president pro tempore of the United States Senate

Whig Party ticket
-Winfield Scott (VA), 66 years old, Lieutenant General of the United States Army
-William Alexander Graham (NC), 48 years old, U.S. Secretary of the Navy

•1856: Buchanan/Breckinridge defeated Frémont/Dayton and Fillmore/Donelson
Democratic Party ticket
-James Buchanan (PA), 65 years old, U.S. Minister to Great Britain
-John C. Breckinridge (KY), 35 years old, former U.S. Representative from Kentucky

Republican Party ticket
-John C. Frémont (CA), 43 years old, former U.S. Senator from California
-William L. Dayton (NJ), 49 years old, former U.S. Senator from New Jersey

American/Know-Nothing Party ticket
-Millard Fillmore (NY), 56 years old, former President of the United States
-Andrew Jackson Donelson (TN), 57 years old, former diplomat/Editor of the Washington Union

•1860: Lincoln/Hamlin defeated Breckinridge/Lane, Bell/Everett, and Douglas/Johnson
Republican Party ticket
-Abraham Lincoln (IL), 51 years old, lawyer/former U.S. Representative from Illinois
-Hannibal Hamlin (ME), 51 years old, incumbent U.S. Senator from Maine

National Democratic Party ticket
-John C. Breckinridge (KY), 39 years old, incumbent Vice President of the United States
-Joseph Lane (OR), 59 years old, incumbent U.S. Senator from Oregon

Constitutional Union Party ticket
-John Bell (TN), 64 years old, former U.S. Senator from Tennessee
-Edward Everett (MA), 66 years old, former U.S. Senator from Massachusetts/former president of Harvard University

Democratic Party ticket
-Stephen A. Douglas (IL), 47 years old, incumbent U.S. Senator from Illinois
-Herschel V. Johnson (GA), 48 years old, former Governor of Georgia

•1864: Lincoln/Johnson defeated McClellan/Pendleton
National Union Party ticket
-Abraham Lincoln (IL), 55 years old, incumbent President of the United States
-Andrew Johnson (TN), 55 years old, incumbent Military Governor of Tennessee

Democratic Party ticket
-George B. McClellan (NJ), 37 years old, Major General of the United States Army
-George H. Pendleton (OH), 39 years old, incumbent U.S. Representative from Ohio

•1868: Grant/Colfax defeated Seymour/Blair
Republican Party ticket
-Ulysses S. Grant (IL), 46 years old, General of the Army/Commanding General of the United States
-Schuyler Colfax (IN), 45 years old, incumbent Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives

Democratic Party ticket
-Horatio Seymour (NY), 58 years old, former Governor of New York
-Francis P. Blair, Jr. (MO), 47 years old, former Major General of the U.S. Army/former U.S. Representative from Missouri

•1872: Grant/Wilson defeated Greeley/Brown
Republican Party ticket
-Ulysses S. Grant (IL), 50 years old, incumbent President of the United States
-Henry Wilson (MA), 60 years old, incumbent U.S. Senator from Massachusetts

Liberal Republican Party ticket
-Horace Greeley (NY), 61 years old, Editor of the New York Tribune
-B. Gratz Brown (MO), 46 years old, incumbent Governor of Missouri
[Greeley died between Election Day and the meeting of the Electoral College, so the votes he would have received were divided amongst Thomas A. Hendricks (IN), the VP candidate B. Gratz Brown, Charles J. Jenkins (GA), and David Davis (IL)]

•1876: Hayes/Wheeler defeated Tilden/Hendricks
[No candidate won the requisite number of Electoral votes needed for election and the disputed 1876 election was decided just two days before Inauguration Day by an Electoral Commission appointed by Congress]
Republican Party ticket
-Rutherford B. Hayes (OH), 54 years old, incumbent Governor of Ohio
-William A. Wheeler (NY), 57 years old, incumbent U.S. Representative from Ohio

Democratic Party ticket
-Samuel J. Tilden (NY), 62 years old, incumbent Governor of New York
-Thomas A. Hendricks (IN), 57 years old, incumbent Governor of Indiana

•1880: Garfield/Arthur defeated Hancock/English
Republican Party ticket
-James Garfield (OH), 48 years old, incumbent U.S. Representative from Ohio
-Chester A. Arthur (NY), 51 years old, former Collector of the Port of New York

Democratic Party ticket
-Winfield Scott Hancock (PA), 56 years old, Major General of the United States Army
-William H. English (IN), 58 years old, author/former U.S. Representative from Indiana

•1884: Cleveland/Hendricks defeated Blaine/Logan
Democratic Party ticket
-Grover Cleveland (NY), 47 years old, incumbent Governor of New York
-Thomas A. Hendricks (IN), 65 years old, former Governor of Indiana/1876 Democratic Vice Presidential nominee

Republican Party ticket
-James G. Blaine (ME), 54 years old, former U.S. Secretary of State/former U.S. Senator from Maine/former Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives
-John A. Logan (IL), 58 years old, incumbent U.S. Senator from Illinois

•1888: Harrison/Morton defeated Cleveland/Thurman
Republican Party ticket
-Benjamin Harrison (IN), 55 years old, former U.S. Senator from Indiana
-Levi P. Morton (NY), 64 years old, former U.S. Minister to France/former U.S. Representative from New York

Democratic Party ticket
-Grover Cleveland (NY), 51 years old, incumbent President of the United States
-Allen G. Thurman (OH), 74 years old, diplomat/former U.S. Senator from Ohio

•1892: Cleveland/Stevenson defeated Harrison/Reid and Weaver/Field
Democratic Party ticket
-Grover Cleveland (NY), 55 years old, former President of the United States
-Adlai E. Stevenson (IL), 57 years old, former U.S. Representative from Illinois/former Assistant Postmaster General of the United States

Republican Party ticket
-Benjamin Harrison (IN), 59 years old, incumbent President of the United States
-Whitelaw Reid (NY), 55 years old, U.S. Ambassador to France

People’s/Populist Party ticket
-James B. Weaver (IA), 59 years old, former U.S. Representative from Iowa
-James G. Field (VA), 66 years old, former Attorney General of Virginia/former Confederate Army General

Now that we know who all of the main players are in the 2012 election, we’re going to break down the major candidates for President and Vice President over the next few days.  First, let’s take a look at the major party tickets for President and Vice President since the enactment of the Twelfth Amendment to the Constitution in 1804:

•1804: Jefferson/Clinton defeated Pinckney/King
Democratic-Republican Party ticket
-Thomas Jefferson (VA), 61 years old, incumbent President of the United States
-George Clinton (NY), 65 years old, former Governor of New York

Federalist Party ticket
-Charles Cotesworth Pinckney (SC), 58 years old, retired soldier (Major General)/diplomat
-Rufus King (NY), 49 years old, diplomat (U.S. Minister to Great Britain)/former U.S. Senator from New York

•1808: Madison/Clinton defeated Pinckney/King
Democratic-Republican Party ticket
-James Madison (VA), 57 years old, incumbent U.S. Secretary of State
-George Clinton (NY), 69 years old, incumbent Vice President of the United States

Federalist Party ticket
-Charles Cotesworth Pinckney (SC), 62 years old, retired soldier/diplomat/1804 Federalist Presidential nominee
-Rufus King (NY), 53 years old, diplomat/former U.S. Senator from New York/1804 Federalist Vice Presidential nominee

•1812: Madison/Gerry defeated Clinton/Ingersoll
Democratic-Republican Party ticket
-James Madison (VA), 61 years old, incumbent President of the United States
-Elbridge Gerry (MA), 68 years old, incumbent Governor of Massachusetts

Federalist Party ticket
-DeWitt Clinton (NY), 43 years old, incumbent Mayor of New York City
-Jared Ingersoll (PA), 63 years old, incumbent Attorney General of Pennsylvania

•1816: Monroe/Tompkins defeated King/Howard
Democratic-Republican Party ticket
-James Monroe (VA), 58 years old, incumbent U.S. Secretary of State
-Daniel D. Tompkins (NY), 42 years old, incumbent Governor of New York

Federalist Party ticket
-Rufus King (NY), 61 years old, incumbent U.S. Senator from New York
-John Eager Howard (MD), 64 years old, former U.S. Senator and Governor of Maryland [The Federalist Party did not officially nominate a Vice Presidential candidate in 1816]

•1820: Monroe/Tompkins were unopposed in the 1820 election
Democratic-Republican Party ticket
-James Monroe (VA), 62 years old, incumbent President of the United States
-Daniel D. Tompkins (NY), 46 years old, incumbent Vice President of the United States

•1824: Adams/Calhoun defeated Jackson/Calhoun, Crawford/Macon, and Clay/Sanford
*The Democratic-Republican Party was the only major political party in 1824 and it resulted in four different tickets emerging from various regions of the country.  No clear winner in the Electoral College led to the election being decided in the House of Representatives in February 1825.  John C. Calhoun originally sought the Presidency, but withdrew to seek the Vice Presidency and was the running mate of both John Quincy Adams and Andrew Jackson.

Democratic-Republican Party
-John Quincy Adams (MA), 57 years old, incumbent U.S. Secretary of State
-John C. Calhoun (SC), 42 years old, incumbent U.S. Secretary of War

Democratic-Republican Party
-Andrew Jackson (TN), 57 years old, incumbent U.S. Senator from Tennessee
-John C. Calhoun (SC), 42 years old, incumbent U.S. Secretary of War

Democratic-Republican Party
-William H. Crawford (GA), 52 years old, incumbent U.S. Secretary of the Treasury
-Nathaniel Macon (NC), 67 years old, incumbent U.S. Senator from North Carolina
[Macon replaced Albert Gallatin, who withdrew after being named Crawford’s running mate]

Democratic-Republican Party
-Henry Clay (KY), 47 years old, incumbent U.S. Speaker of the House of Representatives
-Nathan Sanford (NY), 47 years old, incumbent Chancellor of New York

•1828: Jackson/Calhoun defeated Adams/Rush
Democratic Party ticket
-Andrew Jackson (TN), 61 years old, retired soldier (Major General)/former U.S. Senator from Tennessee
-John C. Calhoun (SC), 46 years old, incumbent Vice President of the United States

National Republican Party ticket
-John Quincy Adams (MA), 61 years old, incumbent President of the United States
-Richard Rush (PA), 48 years old, incumbent U.S. Secretary of the Treasury

•1832: Jackson/Van Buren defeated Clay/Sergeant and Wirt/Ellmaker
Democratic Party ticket
-Andrew Jackson (TN), 64 years old, incumbent President of the United States
-Martin Van Buren (NY), 50 years old, U.S. Minister to Great Britain

National Republican Party ticket
-Henry Clay (KY), 55 years old, incumbent U.S. Senator from Kentucky
-John Sergeant (PA), 53 years old, former U.S. Representative from Pennsylvania

Anti-Masonic Party ticket
-William Wirt (VA), 60 years old, former Attorney General of the United States
-Amos Ellmaker (PA), 45 years old, former Attorney General of Pennsylvania

Since the Presidents of the United States reach the pinnacle of political power, we sometimes forget that the path to the summit is difficult and often full of disappointing political defeats.  Here are some of the elections that our Presidents have lost during their political careers:

•George Washington:  No election losses
•John Adams:  Lost the 1800 Presidential election
•Thomas Jefferson:  Runner-up in the 1796 Presidential election
•James Madison:  Lost a 1777 campaign for reelection to the Virginia House of Delegates
•James Monroe:  Lost a 1789 election to the U.S. House of Representatives from Virginia
•John Quincy Adams:  Lost 1802 election to the U.S. House of Representatives from Massachusetts; Defeated for reelection to the U.S. Senate from Massachusetts in 1808; Lost 1828 campaign for reelection as President; Lost 1834 campaign for Governor of Massachusetts
•Andrew Jackson:  Lost the 1824 Presidential election
•Martin Van Buren:  Lost 1840 campaign for reelection as President; Lost the 1844 campaign for the Democratic Presidential nomination; Lost the 1848 Presidential election
•William Henry Harrison:  Lost the 1820 election for Governor of Ohio; Lost an 1822 campaign for the U.S. House of Representatives from Ohio; Lost the 1836 Presidential election
•John Tyler:  Lost 1836 election for Vice President of the United States
•James K. Polk:  Lost 1841 campaign for reelection as Governor of Tennessee; Lost 1843 election for Governor of Tennessee
•Zachary Taylor:  No election losses
•Millard Fillmore:  Lost 1844 Whig nomination for Vice President; Lost 1844 election for Governor of New York; Lost 1852 campaign for the Whig Presidential nomination; Lost the 1856 Presidential election
•Franklin Pierce:  Lost 1856 campaign for renomination as Democratic Presidential candidate
•James Buchanan:  Lost 1816 election for the U.S. House of Representatives from Pennsylvania; Lost campaign for the 1844 Democratic Presidential nomination; Lost campaign for the 1848 Democratic Presidential nomination; Lost campaign for the 1852 Democratic Presidential nomination
•Abraham Lincoln:  Lost 1832 election for Illinois House of Representatives; Lost 1843 election for the U.S. House of Representatives from Illinois; Lost 1855 election to the U.S. Senate from Illinois; Lost campaign for the 1856 Republican Vice Presidential nomination; Lost 1858 election to the U.S. Senate from Illinois
•Andrew Johnson:  Lost 1837 campaign for reelection to the Tennessee House of Representatives; Lost 1868 campaign for renomination as Democratic Presidential candidate; Lost 1871 election for U.S. Senate from Tennessee; Lost 1872 election for U.S. House of Representatives from Tennessee
•Ulysses S. Grant:  Lost 1880 campaign for the Republican Presidential nomination
•Rutherford B. Hayes:  Lost 1861 campaign for reelection as City Solicitor of Cincinnati, Ohio; Lost 1872 election for the U.S. House of Representatives from Ohio
•James Garfield:  No election losses
•Chester Arthur:  Lost campaign for 1884 Republican Presidential nomination
•Grover Cleveland:  Lost 1865 election for District Attorney of Erie County, New York; Lost 1888 campaign for reelection as President
•Benjamin Harrison:  Lost 1872 campaign for the Republican nomination as Governor of Indiana; Lost 1876 election for Governor of Indiana; Lost 1887 campaign for reelection to the U.S. Senate from Indiana; Lost 1892 campaign for reelection as President
•William McKinley:  Lost 1871 campaign for reelection as Stark County, Ohio prosecutor; Lost 1882 campaign for reelection to the U.S. House of Representatives from Ohio; Lost 1890 campaign for reelection to the U.S. House of Representatives from Ohio; Lost 1892 campaign for the Republican Presidential nomination
•Theodore Roosevelt:  Lost 1886 election for Mayor of New York City, New York; Lost 1912 campaign for Republican Presidential nomination; Lost 1912 Presidential election as third party candidate
•William Howard Taft:  Lost 1912 campaign for reelection as President
•Woodrow Wilson:  No election losses
•Warren G. Harding:  Lost 1892 election for Marion County, Ohio auditor; Lost 1903 campaign for Republican nomination as Governor of Ohio; Lost 1906 campaign for Republican nomination as Governor of Ohio; Lost 1910 election for Governor of Ohio
•Calvin Coolidge:  Lost 1905 election for the the School Board of Northampton, Massachusetts
•Herbert Hoover:  Lost 1932 campaign for reelection as President
•Franklin D. Roosevelt:  Lost 1914 campaign for Democratic nomination for U.S. Senate from New York; Lost 1920 election for Vice President of the United States
•Harry Truman:  Lost 1924 reelection campaign for Judge of Jackson County, Missouri
•Dwight D. Eisenhower:  No election losses
•John F. Kennedy:  Lost 1956 campaign for the Democratic Vice Presidential nomination
•Lyndon B. Johnson:  Lost 1941 election for U.S. Senate from Texas; Lost 1960 campaign for Democratic Presidential nomination
•Richard Nixon:  Lost the 1960 Presidential election; Lost the 1962 election for Governor of California
•Gerald Ford:  Lost the 1976 Presidential election
•Jimmy Carter:  Lost the 1966 campaign for the Democratic nomination for Governor of Georgia; Lost the 1980 Presidential election
•Ronald Reagan:  Lost 1968 campaign for Republican Presidential nomination; Lost 1976 campaign for Republican Presidential nomination
•George H.W. Bush:  Lost 1964 election to the U.S. Senate from Texas; Lost 1970 election to the U.S. Senate from Texas; Lost 1980 campaign for the Republican Presidential nomination; Lost 1992 Presidential election
•Bill Clinton:  Lost 1974 election for the U.S. House of Representatives from Arkansas; Lost 1980 reelection campaign a Governor of Arkansas
•George W. Bush:  Lost 1978 election for the U.S. House of Representatives from Texas
•Barack Obama:  Lost 2000 primary campaign for the Democratic nomination for the U.S. House of Representatives from Illinois

It was the crowning moment in Richard Milhous Nixon’s long career of political ups-and-downs.  For the fifth time, Nixon had been a candidate on the national ticket (twice as Vice President, three times as President).  In 1952 and 1956, the focus was on the top of the ticket, Nixon’s running mate, Dwight Eisenhower.  In 1960, Nixon narrowly lost to — and some would say was the victim of theft from — John F. Kennedy.  In 1968, Nixon finally won election to the Presidency, but he did so with some bitterness:  the country was in shambles and the two people he wanted to oppose more than anyone else in the election — Lyndon Johnson and Bobby Kennedy — had respectively quit and been murdered during the turbulent campaign.  Not only that, but in victory, Nixon had garnered only 43.4% of the vote — a full 6 percentage points less than he had earned in his 1960 loss to JFK.

On November 7, 1972, however, Nixon’s “Silent Majority” spoke loud and clear — and truly gave him both a majority victory and a strong mandate for his second term in the White House.  Nixon trounced Democratic Senator George S. McGovern on election night.  His popular vote victory was 61%-38% and Nixon’s margin in the Electoral College was even larger, 520-17.  Nixon won every single state in the country except for Massachusetts.  Nixon even won McGovern’s home state of South Dakota.

As the election returns rolled in and Nixon’s family, supporters, and staff celebrated, the man who had received the votes of 47,169,841 of his fellow Americans that day to be their President noted that he felt “a curious feeling, perhaps a foreboding, that muted my enjoyment of this triumphal moment.”  In his memoirs, Richard Nixon elaborated further, “I am at a loss to explain the melancholy that settled over me on that victorious night…To some extent the marring effects of Watergate may have played a part, to some extent our failure to win Congress, and to a greater extent the fact that we had not yet been able to end the war in Vietnam.  Or perhaps it was because this would be my last campaign.  Whatever the reasons, I allowed myself only a few minutes to reflect on the past.  I was confident that a new era was about to begin, and I was eager to begin it.”

The new era began the next morning.  At 12:00 PM on November 8, 1972, President Nixon gathered his Cabinet in the White House.  Nixon seemed tired and was suffering from a painful toothache.  National Security Adviser Henry Kissinger noted that the President seemed “grim and remote”.  Nixon’s loyal Chief of Staff, H. R. “Bob” Haldeman was at his side as the President nonchalantly thanked his Cabinet and then described his recent readings about Benjamin Disraeli and how Disraeli described a need to refresh the British government and rid it of the “exhausted volcanoes” in William Gladstone’s Cabinet.  Nixon’s Cabinet was perplexed and curious as to where the President was headed.  He had just won a landslide victory in the Presidential election, but he spoke as if he had lost everything. 

After a few more minutes of talking about his plans for a second term that wasn’t “lethargic” such as those of some of his predecessors, Nixon simply stood up and walked out of the Cabinet Room, headed across the South Lawn, boarded Marine One and flew to his Camp David retreat.  When the President stands, everyone stands but as soon as he left the room, the Cabinet sat down and looked at Bob Haldeman, who took over the meeting.  Haldeman handed pieces of paper out to the Cabinet and said, “You’re all a bunch of burned-out volcanoes”.  Then he immediately demanded everyone’s resignation.  Nixon had won one of the biggest victories in American electoral history, and 24 hours later, he was basically firing everyone who had helped him to do so — earlier in the day, he had done the same thing that he did to the Cabinet to his White House staff.

Henry Kissinger summed it up by saying that, “It was as if victory was not an occasion for reconciliation but an opportunity to settle the scores of a lifetime.”  For Richard Nixon, victory was never enough.  He needed destruction.  Nixon got rid of his exhausted volcanoes, but he was sitting on top of another volcano named Watergate.  His abbreviated second term, which had been won the night before, would end less than two years later in his own personal and professional destruction.

1920: The Year of Six Presidents
By David Pietrusza
Paperback Edition. 2008. 553 pp. Basic Books

In 1920, the United States was weary from the first World War and leaning towards isolationism after spending most of Woodrow Wilson’s Presidential term focused on foreign turmoil. After two terms in the White House, Wilson was a broken man, unpopular with most Americans, despised by his Republican opponents, and an invalid thanks to stroke that nearly killed him in 1919 and left him a physical and emotional wreck who only remained in power due to his wife’s skillful management and concealment of his true condition. In Wilson’s mind, the only person capable of guiding the country through the next four years was Woodrow Wilson and he felt that he deserved an unprecedented third term. President Wilson was adamant that the U.S. join the League of Nations, but his stubborn refusal to consult the Congress or modify his foreign policy not only contributed to the breakdown in his health, but guaranteed that he would not be renominated in 1920. Even if he had, it’s doubtful he would have won and almost certain that he wouldn’t have survived a third term (Wilson died in February 1924).

In 1920: The Year of Six Presidents, David Pietrusza explores a wild and dramatic election with a wide variety of characters that he brings to life in a gripping story that is just as fun as it is informative. Among the contenders for the Presidency heading into 1920 are six men who were former or future Presidents of the United States: Theodore Roosevelt, Woodrow Wilson, Warren G. Harding, Calvin Coolidge, Herbert Hoover, and Franklin D. Roosevelt.

As time progresses towards the national conventions, candidates drop out, drop dead, and are dropped from consideration by their parties. TR died in 1919, derailing what would probably have been an easy Republican victory for the Rough Rider. Wilson not only loses his grip on the reins of the Democratic Party, but slowly descends into madness and paranoia, part of which was the make-up of his character and part of which was a result of his serious illness. Hoover, a hero to millions around the world because of his relief efforts during the first World War, flirts with both parties before settling into the Republican camp and supporting the eventual nominee. Governor Calvin Coolidge of Massachusetts reluctantly hops on board as the Republican Vice Presidential nominee, but campaigns effectively for the ticket. The Democratic Vice Presidential nominee is Franklin D. Roosevelt —- a 38-year-old New Yorker with boundless ambition, unlimited energy, incredibly political connections, and a famous name who was attempting to follow in the footsteps of his legendary cousin, Theodore.

The wild card is Republican Senator Warren G. Harding of Ohio. A compromise candidate that Republican leaders turned to when they couldn’t agree on a nominee at the convention in Chicago; Harding was chosen in what has famously become known as the “smoke-filled room”. Little was known about Harding besides the fact that he was popular with fellow Senators, a good speaker, and looked like a President. Republican operatives asked the potential nominee if he had any skeletons in his closet and, after thinking for a moment, Harding replied, “No”. They probably should have dug a little deeper.

Harding had numerous extramarital affairs, a domineering wife, several rumored illegitimate children, poor health and believed that he was not fit to be President. His Democratic opponent, Governor James Cox (also of Ohio), was straight as an arrow, but eight years of an increasingly unpopular Democratic administration handicapped Cox from the start. FDR covered more ground while campaigning for Cox than any other Presidential or Vice Presidential candidate up to that point, but Harding’s promise for a “return to normalcy” took hold throughout the nation. During the campaign, Republicans outspent the Democratics by a 4-to-1 margin. Harding rarely left the front porch of his Marion, Ohio home; instead, he let the campaign come to him, and addressed supporters who showed up on his lawn to see the Republican candidate. In November, Harding crushed Cox and went on to become just as terrible of a President as he believed he would be. Among scandals and intrigues, Harding died in office in 1923 and was succeeded by Coolidge.

1920: The Year of Six Presidents brilliantly captures the United States during a time of change and turmoil and Pietrusza paints a great picture of what would soon be known at the Roaring 20’s. Besides the six Presidents, Pietrusza introduces other political leaders, potential Presidential candidates, and characters whose connections to the six Presidents are either influential, troublesome, or both. Set during a time of tremendous transformation in America, 1920 is a detailed account of what some consider the first modern campaign in Presidential history complete with advertising, media buys, spin control, and even a smear campaign (rumors that Harding was actually of African-American ancestry). The lessons learned and strategies attempted during the 1920 campaign are still seen and felt today.

History books walk a fine line and it’s difficult for historians to be informative and entertaining. Pietrusza makes it look easy. 1920: The Year of Six Presidents is not merely a great read; it’s a great experience. Theodore White’s The Making of the President series might be the standard that books about Presidential campaigns are measured against, but Pietrusza’s 1920 gives White a run for his money.

Highly recommended
Grade: A-