United States presidential election, 1992
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Category: United States presidential elections
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Election
The 1992 Presidential election was held on Tuesday, November 3, 1992 between incumbent Republican President George H.W. Bush, Democratic governor Bill Clinton, and independent businessman Ross Perot. Governor Clinton unseated the incumbent President Bush by 7.6%.
Results
Electoral Votes:
- Bill Clinton/Al Gore (D): 370
- George H.W. Bush/Dan Quayle (R): 168
- Ross Perot/James Stockdale (I): 0
Popular Vote:
- Bill Clinton/Al Gore (D): 44,909,806 -- 43.0%
- George H.W. Bush/Dan Quayle (R): 39,104,550 -- 37.4%
- Ross Perot/James Stockdale (I): 19,743,821 -- 18.9%
Candidates
Democratic candidates:
Democratic Candidate for President:
- Governor Bill Clinton of Arkansas.
Democratic Candidate for Vice President:
Republican candidates:
Republican Candidate for President:
- President George H.W. Bush of Texas.
Republican Candidate for Vice President:
- Vice President James Danforth Quayle of Indiana.
Major Independent candidates:
Candidate for President:
- Ross Perot of Texas
Candidate for Vice President:
- Vice Admiral James Stockdale of Illinois.
Other Third Party and Independent Candidates
- Andre Marrou of the Libertarian Party
- Howard Phillips of the U.S. Taxpayers Party (now the Constitution Party)
- James A. Warren of the Socialist Workers Party
Campaign Issues
World following the end of the Cold War; the recession of 1991; the Persian Gulf War; the Bush tax increase
Analysis
After the Gulf War, incumbent President Bush looked invincible in the upcoming election. As a result, many prominent Democrats, including Dick Gephardt, Mario Cuomo and Al Gore, opted out. The Democratic primary crowd was a collection of has-beens and unproven politicians. Former California Governor Jerry Brown (who last held office in 1983) represented the far left; Former Massachusetts Senator Paul Tsongas (last held office in 1985) preached business-friendly liberalism flavored with brutal realism, telling people that he "was not Santa Claus". Virginia Governor Douglass Wilder, the first black popularly elected governor jumped in the race but soon ran out of cash. But in October 1991, the young, vibrant Governor of Arkansas, Bill Clinton, jumped into the race. Clinton polled well initially but sunk to single digits when a rumor about sexual harassment appeared in the media. He toughed it out through the winter of 1991-1992, and in January, came in a close second to Tsongas in the New Hampshire primary. His staff was quick to praise him as "the comeback kid", and Clinton went on to win more primaries in the South, gaining enough momentum to force Tsongas out of the race. Brown stuck it out to the end, but his candidacy was rendered hopeless when Clinton won the California primary. Clinton was nominated at the convention, and picked Sen. Al Gore Jr. of Tennessee as his running mate.
Meanwhile, Bush faced a primary challenge from Pat Buchanan. Buchanan was brushed off fairly easily, but his bid made a point: the Republican party was not as unified as previously thought. Bush was nominated at his convention, and he stuck with Dan Quayle as his running mate.
Ross Perot, a Texas electronics magnate, made a strong self-financed Independent bid. Appealing to both Republicans and Democrats, Perot made a strong showing in the polls. He dropped out of the race temporarily, and then re-entered and remained till election day.
Clinton's team operated under the slogan, "It's the economy, stupid", and indeed, the electorate blamed Bush for the stagnant economy. On election day, Clinton won 43 percent to Bush's 38. Perot won an amazing 19 percent, the highest total for an independent since 1912.
See also
- U.S. elections
- Election of 1992
- How To Run For Office
- U.S. gubernatorial elections, 1992
- U.S. Senate election, 1992
- U.S. House election, 1992
References
United States presidential elections
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