:Electoral history of Ronald Reagan
{{Short description|List of political elections featuring Ronald Reagan as a candidate}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=April 2016}}
File:Reagans in limousine.jpg and First Lady Nancy Reagan wave from limousine while touring Dixon, Illinois. February 1984.]]
{{Ronald Reagan series}}
This is the electoral history of Ronald Reagan. Reagan, a Republican, served as the 40th president of the United States (1981–1989) and earlier as the 33rd governor of California (1967–1975). At {{ayd|1911|2|6|1981|1|20}} of age at the time of his first inauguration, Reagan was the oldest person to assume the presidency in the nation's history, until Donald Trump was inaugurated in 2017 at the age of {{ayd|1946|6|14|2017|1|20}}. In 1984, Reagan won re-election at the age of {{ayd|1911|2|6|1984|11|06}}, and was the oldest person to win a US presidential election until Joe Biden won the 2020 United States presidential election at the age of {{ayd|1942|11|20|2020|11|03}}.
Having been elected twice to the presidency,{{cite web | title=Ronald Reagan: Campaigns and Elections | url=http://millercenter.org/president/biography/reagan-campaigns-and-elections | publisher=Miller Center of Public Affairs | access-date=June 27, 2016 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160621133150/http://millercenter.org/president/biography/reagan-campaigns-and-elections | archive-date=June 21, 2016 | url-status=dead }} Reagan reshaped the Republican Party, led the modern conservative movement, and altered the political dynamic of the United States.{{Cite news|url=http://www.cnn.com/2004/ALLPOLITICS/06/06/legacy.politics/index.html|title=Reagan cast a wide shadow in politics|author=Loughlin, Sean|date=July 6, 2004|access-date=June 19, 2008|publisher=CNN}} His 1980 presidential campaign stressed some of his fundamental principles: lower taxes to stimulate the economy,{{Cite news|title=Bush, Like Reagan in 1980, Seeks Tax Cuts to Stimulate the Economy|access-date=February 6, 2008|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1988/09/22/us/bush-like-reagan-in-1980-seeks-tax-cuts-to-stimulate-the-economy.html|author=Uchitelle, Louis|author-link=Louis Uchitelle|date=September 22, 1988|work=The New York Times}} less government interference in people's lives,{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2006/03/14/nyregion/14repubs.html|title=Challengers to Clinton Discuss Plans and Answer Questions|author=Hakim, Danny|date=March 14, 2006|access-date=February 6, 2008|work=The New York Times}} states' rights,Kneeland, Douglas E. (August 4, 1980) "Reagan Campaigns at Mississippi Fair; Nominee Tells Crowd of 10,000 He Is Backing States' Rights." The New York Times. p. A11. Retrieved January 1, 2008. and a strong national defense.John David Lees, Michael Turner. Reagan's first four years: a new beginning? Manchester University Press ND, 1988. p. 11.
During his presidency, Reagan pursued policies that reflected his personal belief in individual freedom, brought changes domestically, both to the U.S. economy and expanded military, and contributed to the end of the Cold War.{{Cite book|first1=Frank |last1=Freidel|author-link1= Frank Freidel|author-link2=Hugh Sidey|last2=Sidey|first2=Hugh|title=The Presidents of the United States of America|year=1995|publisher=White House Historical Association|location=Washington, D.C.|isbn=978-0-912308-57-9|page=84}} Termed the Reagan Revolution, his presidency would reinvigorate American morale,{{cite web|url=http://www.aei.org/publications/pubID.22519/pub_detail.asp|title=Reagan in Retrospect|author=Hayward, Steven F|date=May 16, 2005|access-date=April 7, 2009|publisher=American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090313182355/http://www.aei.org/publications/pubID.22519/pub_detail.asp |archive-date=March 13, 2009}}Cannon (1991, 2000), p. 746. reinvigorate the American economy and reduce American reliance upon government.
1966 California gubernatorial election
{{main|1966 California gubernatorial election|Governorship of Ronald Reagan}}
File:1966 California gubernatorial election results map by county.svg
California Republicans were impressed with Reagan's political views and charisma after his "Time for choosing" speech,{{cite web|url=http://governors.library.ca.gov/33-Reagan.html|title=The Governors' Gallery – Ronald Reagan|publisher=California State Library|access-date=March 21, 2007}} he announced in late 1965, his campaign for Governor of California in 1966.Gerard J. De Groot, "'A Goddamned Electable Person': The 1966 California Gubernatorial Campaign of Ronald Reagan." History 82#267 (1997), pp. 429–448.Totton J. Anderson and Eugene C. Lee, "The 1966 Election in California," Western Political Quarterly (1967) 20#2 pp. 535–554 [https://www.jstor.org/stable/446081 in JSTOR] He won the Republican primary with nearly 65% of the vote, not including write-in votes, defeating four other candidates, including former San Francisco mayor George Christopher. Although he did not run in the Democratic primary, Reagan received 27,422 votes as a write-in candidate.{{rp|page=2}} Not including write-in candidates, 2,570,396 total votes were cast in the Democratic primary,{{rp|page=6}} so Reagan's votes would have comprised about 1% of the total Democratic primary votes. In Reagan's campaign, he emphasized two main themes: "to send the welfare bums back to work", and, in reference to burgeoning anti-war and anti-establishment student protests at the University of California at Berkeley, "to clean up the mess at Berkeley".{{cite news|author=Kahn, Jeffery|publisher=UC Berkeley News|date=June 8, 2004|title=Ronald Reagan launched political career using the Berkeley campus as a target|access-date=March 30, 2007|url=http://www.berkeley.edu/news/media/releases/2004/06/08_reagan.shtml}} Ronald Reagan accomplished in 1966 what US Senator William F. Knowland in 1958 and former vice president Richard M. Nixon in 1962 had tried: he was elected, defeating two-term governor Edmund G. "Pat" Brown, and was sworn in as the 33rd governor of California on January 2, 1967.{{cite web |url=https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/timeline/reagan/ |title=Timeline . Reagan . American Experience . WGBH |website=Pbs.org |access-date=June 29, 2016 |archive-date=March 20, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170320054041/http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/timeline/reagan/ |url-status=dead }}
=Republican primary=
{{Election box begin no change|title=1966 Republican primary election results{{cite book | title=California Statement of the Vote | 1966–1968 | url=https://archive.org/details/californiastate196668cali | publisher=California Secretary of State | access-date=February 18, 2017| year=1962 }}{{rp|page=6}}{{efn|Vote totals do not include write-in votes, including Sam Yorty who received 3,993 votes, and Pat Brown who received 1,700 votes.{{rp|page=2}}}}
}}
{{Election box winning candidate with party link no change
| candidate = Ronald Reagan
| party = Republican Party (United States)
| votes = 1,417,623
| percentage = 64.85
}}
{{Election box candidate with party link no change
| candidate = George Christopher
| party = Republican Party (United States)
| votes = 675,683
| percentage = 30.91
}}
{{Election box candidate with party link no change
| candidate = William Penn Patrick
| party = Republican Party (United States)
| votes = 40,887
| percentage = 1.87
}}
{{Election box candidate with party link no change
| candidate = Warren N. Dorn
| party = Republican Party (United States)
| votes = 44,812
| percentage = 2.04
}}
{{Election box candidate with party link no change
| candidate = Joseph R. Maxwell
| party = Republican Party (United States)
| votes = 7,052
| percentage = 0.32
}}
{{Election box total no change
| votes = 2,186,057
| percentage = 100
}}
{{Election box end}}
=General election=
{{Election box begin no change | title=1966 California gubernatorial election{{cite web|title=1966 Gubernatorial General Election Results – California |url=http://uselectionatlas.org/RESULTS/state.php?fips=6&year=1966&f=0&off=5&elect=0 |website=uselectionatlas.org |access-date=December 5, 2015 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150912100628/http://uselectionatlas.org/RESULTS/state.php?fips=6&year=1966&f=0&off=5&elect=0 |archive-date=September 12, 2015 |df=mdy }}{{cite journal |last1=Anderson |first1=Totton J. |last2=Lee |first2=Eugene C. |date=June 1967 |title=The 1966 Election in California |journal=The Western Political Quarterly |volume=20 |issue=2 |pages=535–554 |doi=10.2307/446081 |jstor=446081 }}}}
{{Election box winning candidate with party link no change
|party = California Republican Party
|candidate = Ronald Reagan
|votes = 3,742,913
|percentage = 57.55
}}
{{Election box candidate with party link no change
|party = California Democratic Party
|candidate = Pat Brown (incumbent)
|votes = 2,749,174
|percentage = 42.27
}}
{{Election box candidate no change
|party = Other
|candidate = Various candidates
|votes = 11,358
|percentage = 0.18
}}
{{Election box total no change
|votes = 6,503,445
|percentage = 100.00
}}
{{Election box turnout no change
|percentage =77.98
}}
{{Election box gain with party link without swing
|winner = California Republican Party
|loser = California Democratic Party
}}
{{Election box end}}
1968 presidential election
{{main|1968 United States presidential election}}
Shortly after the beginning of his term as California governor, Reagan tested the presidential waters in 1968 as part of a "Stop Nixon" movement, hoping to cut into Nixon's Southern support{{cite book|author=Fischer, Klaus|title=America in White, Black, and Gray: The Stormy 1960s|year=2006|publisher=Continuum|isbn=978-0-8264-1816-6|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=sCXig_6abwkC&pg=PA241 |pages=241–243}} and be a compromise candidate{{cite magazine|url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,899963,00.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071114005733/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,899963,00.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=November 14, 2007|title=The New Rules of Play|magazine=Time|date=March 8, 1968|access-date=October 16, 2007}} if neither Nixon nor second-place Nelson Rockefeller received enough delegates to win on the first ballot at the Republican convention. However, by the time of the convention Nixon had 692 delegate votes, 25 more than he needed to secure the nomination, followed by Rockefeller with Reagan in third place.
=Republican presidential primaries=
File:1968RepublicanPresidentialPrimaries.svg. Blue denotes a state won by Nelson Rockefeller. Green denotes a state won by James A. Rhodes. Purple denotes a state won by Ronald Reagan. Grey denotes a state that did not hold a primary.]]
| class="wikitable" | |||||
| colspan=6 style="background:#f5f5f5" | 1968 Republican Party presidential primaries[http://library.cqpress.com/cqalmanac/cqal68-1282595 "Results of the 15 Presidential Primaries in 1968."] CQ Almanac 1968, 24th ed., 19-971-19-973. Washington, DC: Congressional Quarterly, 1969."[http://library.cqpress.com/cqalmanac/cqal68-1282597 Chronology of Political Events]: Nov. 1967—Nov. 1968." CQ Almanac 1968, 24th ed., 19-974-19-978. Washington, DC: Congressional Quarterly, 1969.{{sfn|Troy|Schlesinger|Israel|2012|p=1319}} | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| style="width: 8em;" colspan=2 | Party | Candidate | Aggregate votes | % | CW | |
| style="background-color: {{party color|Republican Party (United States)}}" | | style="width: 7em;" rowspan=5 | Republican | style="width: 13em;" | Ronald Reagan | style="width: 9em; text-align:right" | 1,696,632 | style="width: 3em; text-align:right" | 37.93 | style="width: 2em; text-align:right" | 1{{0|0}} |
| style="background-color: {{party color|Republican Party (United States)}}" | | Richard Nixon | style="text-align:right" | 1,679,443 | style="text-align:right" | 37.54 | style="text-align:right" | 10{{efn|Richard Nixon won primaries in 9 states plus the District of Columbia primary.}} | |
| style="background-color: {{party color|Republican Party (United States)}}" | | James A. Rhodes | style="text-align:right" | 614,492 | style="text-align:right" | 13.74 | style="text-align:right" | 1{{0|0}} | |
| style="background-color: {{party color|Republican Party (United States)}}" | | Nelson Rockefeller | style="text-align:right" | 164,340 | style="text-align:right" | 3.67 | style="text-align:right" | 1{{0|0}} | |
| style="background-color: {{party color|Republican Party (United States)}}" | | Unpledged | style="text-align:right" | 140,639 | style="text-align:right" | 3.14 | style="text-align:right" | 0{{0|0}} |
=1968 Republican National Convention=
| class="wikitable" | ||||
| colspan=5 style="background:#f5f5f5" | 1968 Republican presidential nomination{{sfn|Troy|Schlesinger|Israel|2012|pp=1318–1319}} | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| style="vertical-align:bottom;"
! style="width: 8em;" colspan=2 | Party !! Candidate !! Votes: | ||||
| style="background-color: {{party color|Republican Party (United States)}}" | | style="width: 7em;" rowspan=8 | Republican | style="width: 13em;" | Richard Nixon | style="width: 9em; text-align:right" | (692) 1238 | style="width: 3em; text-align:right" | 92.95 |
| style="background-color: {{party color|Republican Party (United States)}}" | | Nelson Rockefeller | style="text-align:right" | (277){{0|00}}93 | style="text-align:right" | 6.98 | |
| style="background-color: {{party color|Republican Party (United States)}}" | | Ronald Reagan | style="text-align:right" | (182){{0|000}}2 | style="text-align:right" | 0.07 | |
| style="background-color: {{party color|Republican Party (United States)}}" | | James Rhodes | style="text-align:right" | (55){{0|000}}0 | style="text-align:right" | {{center|—}} | |
| style="background-color: {{party color|Republican Party (United States)}}" | | George Romney | style="text-align:right" | (50){{0|000}}0 | style="text-align:right" | {{center|—}} | |
| style="background-color: {{party color|Republican Party (United States)}}" | | Clifford Case | style="text-align:right" | (22){{0|000}}0 | style="text-align:right" | {{center|—}} | |
| style="background-color: {{party color|Republican Party (United States)}}" | | Frank Carlson | style="text-align:right" | (20){{0|000}}0 | style="text-align:right" | {{center|—}} | |
| style="background-color: {{party color|Republican Party (United States)}}" | | Others | style="text-align:right" | (35){{0|000}}0 | style="text-align:right" | {{center|—}} |
1970 California gubernatorial election
{{main|1970 California gubernatorial election|Governorship of Ronald Reagan}}
File:1970 California gubernatorial election results map by county.svg
Despite an unsuccessful attempt to recall him in 1968,[https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2003-jul-13-me-history13-story.html Recall Idea Got Its Start in L.A. in 1898], Los Angeles Times, July 13, 2003. Reagan was unopposed in the Republican primary and was re-elected in 1970, defeating "Big Daddy" Jesse Unruh. He did not seek a third term in the following election cycle.
=Republican primary=
{{Election box begin no change | title=1970 Republican gubernatorial primary{{cite book | title=Statement of the Vote | 1970–1972 | url=https://archive.org/details/statementofvote197072cali | publisher=California Secretary of State | access-date=February 18, 2017| year=1968 }}{{rp|page=7}}
* denotes incumbent}}
{{Election box winning candidate with party link no change
|party = Republican Party (United States)
|candidate = Ronald Reagan*
|votes = 1,906,568
|percentage = 100
}}
{{Election box total no change
|votes = 1,906,568
|percentage = 100.00
}}
{{Election box end}}
=General election=
{{Election box begin no change| title=1970 California gubernatorial election{{cite web | title=1970 Gubernatorial General Election Results – California | url=http://uselectionatlas.org/RESULTS/state.php?fips=6&year=1970&f=0&off=5&elect=0 | website=uselectionatlas.org | access-date=December 5, 2015}}{{cite journal |last1=Anderson |first1=Totton J. |last2=Bell |first2=Charles G. |date=June 1971 |title=The 1970 Election in California |journal=The Western Political Quarterly |volume=24 |issue=2 |pages=252–273 |doi=10.2307/446870 |jstor=446870 }}
* denotes incumbent}}
{{Election box winning candidate with party link no change
|party = California Republican Party
|candidate = Ronald Reagan (incumbent)
|votes = 3,439,664
|percentage = 52.83
}}
{{Election box candidate with party link no change
|party = California Democratic Party
|candidate = Jesse M. Unruh
|votes = 2,938,607
|percentage = 45.14
}}
{{Election box candidate with party link no change
|party = Peace and Freedom Party
|candidate = Ricardo Romo
|votes = 65,954
|percentage = 1.01
}}
{{Election box candidate with party link no change
|party = American Independent Party
|candidate = William K. Shearer
|votes = 65,847
|percentage = 1.01
}}
{{Election box total no change
|votes = 6,510,072
|percentage = 100.00
}}
{{Election box turnout no change
|percentage = 74.78
}}
{{Election box hold with party link without swing
|winner = California Republican Party
}}
{{Election box end}}
1976 presidential election
{{main|1976 United States presidential election}}
File:Republican presidential primary results, 1976.svg
File:1976RepublicanPresidentialNominationVotePathed.svg for the presidential nomination by state delegations]]
In 1976, Reagan challenged incumbent President Gerald Ford in a bid to become the Republican Party's candidate for president. Reagan soon established himself as the conservative candidate with the support of like-minded organizations such as the American Conservative Union which became key components of his political base, while President Ford was considered a more moderate Republican.{{cite web|url=https://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/history/presidents/gf38.html|title=Biography of Gerald R. Ford|access-date=March 29, 2007|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100610172811/http://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/history/presidents/gf38.html|archive-date=June 10, 2010|via=National Archives|work=whitehouse.gov|df=mdy-all}} Ford considered himself as "a moderate in domestic affairs, a conservative in fiscal affairs, and a dyed-in-the-wool internationalist in foreign affairs". Though Reagan lost the Republican nomination, he received 307 write-in votes in New Hampshire, 388 votes as an Independent on Wyoming's ballot, and a single electoral vote from a faithless elector in the November election from the state of Washington,{{cite web|url=https://www.archives.gov/federal-register/electoral-college/scores.html#1976|title=Electoral College Box Scores 1789–1996|access-date=April 30, 2007|publisher=U.S. National Archives and Records Admin.}} which Ford had won over Democratic challenger Jimmy Carter. Ford ultimately lost the general election to Carter.
=Republican primaries=
| class="wikitable" | |||||
| colspan=6 style="background:#f5f5f5" | 1976 Republican Party presidential primaries{{sfn|Troy|Schlesinger|Israel|2012|p=1386}} * denotes incumbent | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| style="width: 8em;" colspan=2 | Party | Candidate | Aggregate votes | % | CW | |
| style="background-color: {{party color|Republican Party (United States)}}" | | style="width: 7em;" rowspan=4 | Republican | style="width: 13em;" | Gerald Ford* | style="width: 9em; text-align:right" | 5,529,899 | style="width: 3em; text-align:right" | 53.29 | style="width: 4em; text-align:right" | 27{{efn|Gerald Ford won primaries in 26 states plus the District of Columbia primary.}} |
| style="background-color: {{party color|Republican Party (United States)}}" | | Ronald Reagan | style="text-align:right" | 4,760,222 | style="text-align:right" | 45.88 | style="text-align:right" | 24{{0|0}} | |
| style="background-color: {{party color|Republican Party (United States)}}" | | Others | style="text-align:right" | 44,626 | style="text-align:right" | 0.43 | style="text-align:right" | 0{{0|0}} | |
| style="background-color: {{party color|Republican Party (United States)}}" | | Unpledged | style="text-align:right" | 34,717 | style="text-align:right" | 0.34 | style="text-align:right" | 0{{0|0}} |
=Republican National Convention=
| class="wikitable" | ||||
| colspan=5 style="background:#f5f5f5" | 1976 Republican presidential nomination{{sfn|Troy|Schlesinger|Israel|2012|p=1385}} * denotes incumbent | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| style="width: 8em;" colspan=2 | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
| style="background-color: {{party color|Republican Party (United States)}}" | | style="width: 7em;" rowspan=3 | Republican | style="width: 13em;" | Gerald Ford* | style="width: 5em; text-align:right" | 1,187 | style="width: 3em; text-align:right" | 52.57 |
| style="background-color: {{party color|Republican Party (United States)}}" | | Ronald Reagan | style="text-align:right" | 1,070 | style="text-align:right" | 47.39 | |
| style="background-color: {{party color|Republican Party (United States)}}" | | Elliot Richardson | style="text-align:right" | 1 | style="text-align:right" | 0.04 |
| class="wikitable" | ||||
| colspan=5 style="background:#f5f5f5" | 1976 Republican vice presidential nomination{{cite web|url=http://library.cqpress.com/cqalmanac/document.php?id=cqal76-1188444|title=1976 Republican Convention Divided Republicans Nominate Ford and Dole|publisher=Congressional Quarterly (In CQ Almanac 1976, 32nd ed., 892-99. Washington, DC: Congressional Quarterly, 1977.)|access-date=March 17, 2017}} | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| style="width: 8em;" colspan=2 | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
| style="background-color: {{party color|Republican Party (United States)}}" | | style="width: 7em;" rowspan=13 | Republican | style="width: 13em;" | Bob Dole | style="width: 5em; text-align:right" | 1,921 | style="width: 3em; text-align:right" | 85.04 |
| style="background-color: {{party color|Republican Party (United States)}}" | | Abstentions | style="text-align:right" | 103 | style="text-align:right" | 4.56 | |
| style="background-color: {{party color|Republican Party (United States)}}" | | Jesse Helms | style="text-align:right" | 103 | style="text-align:right" | 4.56 | |
| style="background-color: {{party color|Republican Party (United States)}}" | | Ronald Reagan | style="text-align:right" | 27 | style="text-align:right" | 1.20 | |
| style="background-color: {{party color|Republican Party (United States)}}" | | Phil Crane | style="text-align:right" | 23 | style="text-align:right" | 1.02 | |
| style="background-color: {{party color|Republican Party (United States)}}" | | John Grady | style="text-align:right" | 19 | style="text-align:right" | 0.84 | |
| style="background-color: {{party color|Republican Party (United States)}}" | | Louis Frey | style="text-align:right" | 9 | style="text-align:right" | 0.40 | |
| style="background-color: {{party color|Republican Party (United States)}}" | | Anne Armstrong | style="text-align:right" | 6 | style="text-align:right" | 0.27 | |
| style="background-color: {{party color|Republican Party (United States)}}" | | Howard Baker | style="text-align:right" | 6 | style="text-align:right" | 0.27 | |
| style="background-color: {{party color|Republican Party (United States)}}" | | William F. Buckley | style="text-align:right" | 4 | style="text-align:right" | 0.18 | |
| style="background-color: {{party color|Republican Party (United States)}}" | | John Connally | style="text-align:right" | 4 | style="text-align:right" | 0.18 | |
| style="background-color: {{party color|Republican Party (United States)}}" | | David C. Treen | style="text-align:right" | 4 | style="text-align:right" | 0.18 | |
| style="background-color: {{party color|Republican Party (United States)}}" | | Others | style="text-align:right" | 30 | style="text-align:right" | 1.30 |
=Electoral College vote=
| class="wikitable" | ||||
| colspan=5 style="background:#f5f5f5" | 1976 United States presidential election results Electoral College vote{{cite web| title=1976 Presidential General Election Results| url=https://uselectionatlas.org/RESULTS/national.php?year=1976&off=0&elect=0&f=0| website=uselectionatlas.org| publisher=Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Elections| access-date=April 4, 2019}} * denotes incumbent | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| style="vertical-align:bottom;"
! style="width: 10em;" colspan=2 | Party !! Presidential | ||||
| style="background-color: {{party color|Democratic Party (United States)}}" | | style="width: 9em;" | Democratic | style="width: 12em;" | Jimmy Carter | style="width: 12em;" | Walter Mondale | style="width: 4em; text-align:right" | 297{{0|0}} |
| style="background-color: {{party color|Republican Party (United States)}}" | | Republican | Gerald Ford* | Bob Dole | style="text-align:right" | 240{{0|0}} |
| style="background-color: {{party color|Republican Party (United States)}}" | | Republican | Ronald Reagan | Bob Dole | style="text-align:right" | 1{{efn|One faithless elector in the state of Washington cast his electoral vote for Ronald Reagan (president) and Bob Dole (vice president).}} |
| colspan=4 style="text-align:right" | Total votes:
| 538 | ||||
| colspan=4 style="text-align:right" | Votes necessary:
| 270 |
1980 presidential election
{{main|1980 United States presidential election}}
Reagan ran against Democratic incumbent Jimmy Carter and independent candidate John B. Anderson.{{cite web| title=1980 Presidential General Election Results| url=https://uselectionatlas.org/RESULTS/national.php?year=1980&off=0&elect=0&f=0| website=uselectionatlas.org| publisher=Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Elections| access-date=April 11, 2019}} He was praised by supporters for running a campaign of upbeat optimism.{{cite book | title = The Strategy of Campaigning |author1=Skinner, Kudelia |author2=Mesquita, Rice | publisher = University of Michigan Press | year = 2007 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=F0dCiDh4fMsC | access-date = October 20, 2008 | isbn = 978-0-472-11627-0}} Aided by the Iran hostage crisis and a worsening economy at home marked by high unemployment and inflation, Reagan won the election in a massive landslide.{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1980/11/05/politics/05REAG.html|author=Hedrick Smith|title=Reagan Easily Beats Carter; Republicans Gain in Congress|newspaper=The New York Times|date=November 5, 1980|access-date=June 29, 2016}}{{cite news|author1=Harold Jackson |author2=Alex Brummer |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/1980/nov/05/usa.alexbrummer |title=A landslide makes it President Reagan | US news |newspaper=The Guardian |date=November 5, 1980 |access-date=June 29, 2016}} The 1980 presidential election marked the beginning of the Reagan Era, and signified a conservative realignment in national politics.{{cite web|last=Troy |first=Gil |url=http://www.gilderlehrman.org/history-by-era/essays/age-reagan |title=The Age of Reagan | The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History |website=Gilderlehrman.org |access-date=June 29, 2016}}{{cite web|last=Page |first=Susan |url=http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/washington/2004-06-05-reagan-political-landscape_x.htm |title=USATODAY.com - Reagan's political force realigned political landscape |website=Usatoday30.usatoday.com |date=June 6, 2004 |access-date=June 29, 2016}} At 69 years old, Reagan was the oldest person ever to become president of the U.S. until 2017, when President Donald Trump was sworn in at the age of 70.
=Republican presidential primaries=
File:Republican presidential primary results, 1980.svg
| class="wikitable" | |||||
| colspan=6 style="background:#f5f5f5" | 1980 Republican Party presidential primaries{{sfn|Troy|Schlesinger|Israel|2012|p=1418}} | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| style="width: 8em;" colspan=2 | Party | Candidate | Aggregate votes | % | CW | |
| style="background-color: {{party color|Republican Party (United States)}}" | | style="width: 7em;" rowspan=7 | Republican | style="width: 13em;" | Ronald Reagan | style="width: 9em; text-align:right" | 7,709,793 | style="width: 3em; text-align:right" | 59.79 | style="width: 2em; text-align:right" | 44{{0|0}} |
| style="background-color: {{party color|Republican Party (United States)}}" | | George H. W. Bush | style="text-align:right" | 3,070,033 | style="text-align:right" | 23.81 | style="text-align:right" | 7{{efn|George H. W. Bush won primaries in 6 states plus the District of Columbia primary.}} | |
| style="background-color: {{party color|Republican Party (United States)}}" | | John B. Anderson | style="text-align:right" | 1,572,174 | style="text-align:right" | 12.19 | style="text-align:right" | 0{{0|0}} | |
| style="background-color: {{party color|Republican Party (United States)}}" | | Howard Baker | style="text-align:right" | 181,153 | style="text-align:right" | 1.41 | style="text-align:right" | 0{{0|0}} | |
| style="background-color: {{party color|Republican Party (United States)}}" | | Phil Crane | style="text-align:right" | 97,793 | style="text-align:right" | 0.76 | style="text-align:right" | 0{{0|0}} | |
| style="background-color: {{party color|Republican Party (United States)}}" | | John Connally | style="text-align:right" | 82,625 | style="text-align:right" | 0.64 | style="text-align:right" | 0{{0|0}} | |
| style="background-color: {{party color|Republican Party (United States)}}" | | Unpledged | style="text-align:right" | 68,155 | style="text-align:right" | 0.53 | style="text-align:right" | 0{{0|0}} |
=Republican National Convention=
| class="wikitable" | ||||
| colspan=5 style="background:#f5f5f5" | 1980 Republican presidential nomination{{sfn|Troy|Schlesinger|Israel|2012|pp=1477-1418}} | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| style="width: 8em;" colspan=2 | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
| style="background-color: {{party color|Republican Party (United States)}}" | | style="width: 7em;" rowspan=4 | Republican | style="width: 13em;" | Ronald Reagan | style="width: 5em; text-align:right" | 1,939 | style="width: 3em; text-align:right" | 97.44 |
| style="background-color: {{party color|Republican Party (United States)}}" | | John B. Anderson | style="text-align:right" | 37 | style="text-align:right" | 1.86 | |
| style="background-color: {{party color|Republican Party (United States)}}" | | George H. W. Bush | style="text-align:right" | 13 | style="text-align:right" | 0.65 | |
| style="background-color: {{party color|Republican Party (United States)}}" | | Anne Armstrong | style="text-align:right" | 1 | style="text-align:right" | 0.05 |
=Presidential election=
| class="wikitable" | |||||
| colspan=6 style="background:#f5f5f5" | 1980 United States presidential election{{National Archives EV source| year=1980| as of=April 11, 2019}} * denotes incumbent | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| style="vertical-align:bottom;"
! style="width: 11em;" colspan=2 | Party !! Presidential | |||||
| style="background-color: {{party color|Republican Party (United States)}}" | | style="width: 10.5em;" | Republican | style="width: 11em;" | Ronald Reagan | style="width: 11em;" | George H. W. Bush | style="width: 10em; text-align:right" | 43,903,230{{spaces|2}}(50.75) | style="width: 6em; text-align:right" | 489{{spaces|2}}(90.9) |
| style="background-color: {{party color|Democratic Party (United States)}}" | | Democratic | Jimmy Carter* | Walter Mondale* | style="text-align:right" | 35,480,115{{spaces|2}}(41.01) | style="text-align:right" | 49{{spaces|3}}(9.1) |
| style="background-color: {{party color|Independent (United States)}}" | | Independent | John B. Anderson | Patrick Lucey | style="text-align:right" | 5,719,850{{spaces|3}}(6.61) | style="text-align:right" | {{center|0}} |
| style="background-color: {{party color|Libertarian Party (United States)}}" | | Libertarian | Ed Clark | David Koch | style="text-align:right" | 921,128{{spaces|3}}(1.06) | style="text-align:right" | {{center|0}} |
| style="background-color: {{party color|Citizens Party (United States)}}" | | Citizens | Barry Commoner | LaDonna Harris | style="text-align:right" | 233,052{{spaces|3}}(0.21) | style="text-align:right" | {{center|0}} |
| style="background-color: gray" | | colspan=3 | Others | style="text-align:right" | 252,303{{spaces|3}}(0.29) | style="text-align:right" | {{center|0}} | ||
| colspan=4 style="text-align:right" | Total votes:
| 86,509,678 || 538 | |||||
| colspan=5 style="text-align:right" | Votes necessary:
| 270 |
1984 presidential election
{{main|1984 United States presidential election}}
Reagan ran for reelection as president in 1984, running against Democrat Walter Mondale. Reagan was re-elected, receiving 58.8% of the popular vote to Mondale's 40.6%, and winning 49 of 50 states.{{cite web| title=1984 Presidential General Election Results| url=https://uselectionatlas.org/RESULTS/national.php?year=1984&off=0&elect=0&f=0| website=uselectionatlas.org| publisher=Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Elections| access-date=April 11, 2019}} Reagan won a record 525 electoral votes (97.6 percent of the 538 votes in the Electoral College), the most by any candidate in American history.{{cite web|url=http://www.reagan.utexas.edu/archives/reference/pressketch.html|title=The Reagan Presidency|access-date=April 19, 2008|publisher=Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation|archive-date=May 1, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080501204156/https://web.archive.org/web/20080517013218/http://www.reagan.utexas.edu/archives/reference/pressketch.html|url-status=dead}} This was the second-most lopsided presidential election in modern U.S. history after Franklin D. Roosevelt's 1936 victory over Alfred M. Landon, in which he won 98.5 percent or 523 of the (then-total) 531 electoral votes.{{cite web|url=https://www.britannica.com/event/United-States-presidential-election-of-1984 |title=United States presidential election of 1984 | United States government |website=Britannica.com |access-date=June 29, 2016}}{{cite web| title=The Most Lopsided Presidential Elections in U.S. History: How a Landslide is Measured| last=Murse| first=Tom| date=January 28, 2019| url=https://www.thoughtco.com/landslide-presidential-elections-by-electoral-votes-3367489| publisher=ThoughtCo| access-date=April 11, 2019}} At 73 years old, Reagan again became the oldest person elected to the presidency, breaking his own record in 1980.{{cite web|last=Raines |first=Howell |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1984/11/07/politics/07REAG.html?pagewanted=all |title=Reagan Wins By a Landslide, Sweeping at Least 48 States - G.O.P. Gains Strength in House |website=The New York Times |date=November 7, 1984 |access-date=June 29, 2016}}
=Republican presidential primaries=
| class="wikitable" | |||||
| colspan=6 style="background:#f5f5f5" | 1984 Republican Party presidential primaries{{sfn|Troy|Schlesinger|Israel|2012|p=1448}} * denotes incumbent | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| style="width: 8em;" colspan=2 | Party | Candidate | Aggregate votes | % | CW | |
| style="background-color: {{party color|Republican Party (United States)}}" | | style="width: 7em;" rowspan=3 | Republican | style="width: 13em;" | Ronald Reagan* | style="width: 9em; text-align:right" | 6,484,987 | style="width: 3em; text-align:right" | 98.78 | style="width: 2em; text-align:right" | 50 |
| style="background-color: {{party color|Republican Party (United States)}}" | | Unpledged | style="text-align:right" | 55,458 | style="text-align:right" | 0.85 | style="text-align:right" | 0 | |
| style="background-color: {{party color|Republican Party (United States)}}" | | Harold Stassen | style="text-align:right" | 12,749 | style="text-align:right" | 0.19 | style="text-align:right" | 0 |
=Republican National Convention=
| class="wikitable" | ||||
| colspan=5 style="background:#f5f5f5" | 1984 Republican presidential nomination{{sfn|Troy|Schlesinger|Israel|2012|p=1447}} * denotes incumbent | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| style="width: 8em;" colspan=2 | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
| style="background-color: {{party color|Republican Party (United States)}}" | | style="width: 7em;" rowspan=2 | Republican | style="width: 13em;" | Ronald Reagan* | style="width: 5em; text-align:right" | 2,233 | style="width: 3em; text-align:right" | 99.91 |
| style="background-color: {{party color|Republican Party (United States)}}" | | Abstentions | style="text-align:right" | 2 | style="text-align:right" | 0.09 |
=Presidential election=
| class="wikitable" | |||||
| colspan=6 style="background:#f5f5f5" | 1984 United States presidential election{{National Archives EV source| year=1984| as of=April 11, 2019}} * denotes incumbent | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| style="vertical-align:bottom;"
! style="width: 11em;" colspan=2 | Party !! Presidential | |||||
| style="background-color: {{party color|Republican Party (United States)}}" | | style="width: 10.5em;" | Republican | style="width: 11em;" | Ronald Reagan* | style="width: 11em;" | George H. W. Bush* | style="width: 10em; text-align:right" | 54,455,472{{spaces|2}}(58.77) | style="width: 6em; text-align:right" | 525{{spaces|2}}(97.6) |
| style="background-color: {{party color|Democratic Party (United States)}}" | | Democratic | Walter Mondale | Geraldine Ferraro | style="text-align:right" | 37,577,352{{spaces|2}}(40.56) | style="text-align:right" | 13{{spaces|2}}(2.4) |
| style="background-color: {{party color|Libertarian Party (United States)}}" | | Libertarian | David Bergland | James Lewis | style="text-align:right" | 228,111{{spaces|2}}(0.25) | style="text-align:right" | {{center|0}} |
| style="background-color: gray" | | colspan=3 | Others | style="text-align:right" | 393,298{{spaces|2}}(0.42) | style="text-align:right" | {{center|0}} | ||
| colspan=4 style="text-align:right" | Total votes:
| 92,653,233 || 538 | |||||
| colspan=5 style="text-align:right" | Votes necessary:
| 270 |
See also
- Reagan coalition, the combination of voters who supported Reagan and his election campaigns.
- Reagan Democrat, a traditionally Democratic voter who defected from their party to support Reagan in 1980 and 1984.
- Reagan's coattails, the influence of Reagan's popularity on elections other than his own, after the American political expression to "ride in on another's coattails."
Notes
{{notelist}}
References
{{Reflist}}
Bibliography
- {{cite book |last1=Troy |first1=Gil |last2=Schlesinger |first2=Arthur M. |last3=Israel |first3=Fred L. |date=2012 |title=History of American Presidential Elections, 1789–2008 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=T6ZKMQAACAAJ&q=History%20of%20American%20Presidential%20Elections%2C%201789-2008 |location=New York City |publisher=Facts on File |isbn=978-0-8160-8220-9 |volume=3 |edition=4 |author-link1=Gil Troy |author-link2=Arthur M. Schlesinger Jr. }}
{{Ronald Reagan}}
{{USPresidentsElectoralHistory}}
{{Good article}}