Happy almost Election Day! I hope all twelve of you practice your civic duty and getting out to those polling stations. With Election Day on the horizon, here are four fascinating elections that occurred on this day in history.
1. In 1944, Franklin D. Roosevelt won his fourth consecutive term, the only president to serve four terms. In this election, FDR defeated Republican candidate Thomas Dewey, due to widespread support for FDR during World War II.
2. The 2000 election between George W. Bush and Al Gore was one of the most controversial elections in history. The results of Florida were going to determine the election, but Bush’s small winning margin demanded a recount. However, the Supreme Court’s 5-4 decision ended the recount, sending Bush to the White House as the 43rd president of the United States.
3. In 1956, Dwight D. Eisenhower reelected after he defeated Adlai Stevenson, the democratic nominee, gathering 457-73 in the electoral college. This was the last election to only include 48 states. The next election in 1960 contained the votes of Alaska and Hawaii.
4. In the 1972 election between Republican candidate Richard Nixon and Democratic candidate George McGovern, Nixon won the popular vote by over 18 million votes, the largest margin victory ever. Only two years into his presidency, however, Nixon was forced to resign due to the Watergate Scandal.
There you have it. Now, if we don't want a repeat of 1972, make sure to fill out your absentee ballots or take a stroll down to the polling area. There's only been four times in history that the winner of the election lost the popular vote. So remember, your vote matters. Most of the time.
