This is a list of American electoral candidates for the offices of President of the United States and Vice President of the United States of the modern Democratic Party, either duly preselected and nominated, or the presumptive nominees of a future preselection and election. Opponents who received over one percent of the popular vote or ran an official campaign that received Electoral College votes are listed. Offices held prior to Election Day are included, and those held on Election Day have an italicized end date.
Presidential nominee | 1828 (won), 1832 (won) | Vice presidential nominee | |
---|---|---|---|
Andrew Jackson of TN (1767–1845) |
|
| John C. Calhoun of SC (1782–1850) (1828) |
| Martin Van Buren of NY (1782–1862) (1832) | ||
Opponent(s) John Quincy Adams (National Republican) |
| Opponent(s) Richard Rush (National Republican) | |
Opponent(s) Henry Clay (Whig) William Wirt (Anti-Masonic) |
| Opponent(s) John Sergeant (Whig) Amos Ellmaker (Anti-Masonic) |
Presidential nominee | 1836 (won), 1840 (lost) | Vice presidential nominee | |
---|---|---|---|
Martin Van Buren of NY (1782–1862) |
|
| Richard Johnson of KY (1780–1850) |
Opponent(s) William Harrison (Northern Whig) Hugh White (Southern Whig) |
| Opponent(s) Francis Granger (Northern Whig) John Tyler (Southern Whig) | |
Opponent(s) William Harrison (Whig) |
| Opponent(s) John Tyler (Whig) |
Presidential nominee | 1844 (won) | Vice presidential nominee | |
---|---|---|---|
James Polk of TN (1795–1849) |
|
| Silas Wright of NY (1795–1847) (1844) [4] |
| George Dallas of PA (1792–1864) (1844) | ||
Opponent(s) Henry Clay (Whig) James Birney (Liberty) |
| Opponent(s) Theodore Frelinghuysen (Whig) Thomas Morris (Liberty) |
Presidential nominee | 1848 (lost) | Vice presidential nominee | |
---|---|---|---|
Lewis Cass of MI (1782–1866) |
|
| William Butler of KY (1791–1880) |
Opponent(s) Zachary Taylor (Whig) Martin Van Buren (Free Soil) |
| Opponent(s) Millard Fillmore (Whig) Charles Adams (Free Soil) |
Presidential nominee | 1852 (won) | Vice presidential nominee | |
---|---|---|---|
Franklin Pierce of NH (1804–1869) |
|
| William King of AL (1786–1853) |
Opponent(s) Winfield Scott (Whig) John Hale (Free Soil) |
| Opponent(s) William Graham (Whig) George Julian (Free Soil) |
Presidential nominee | 1856 (won) | Vice presidential nominee | |
---|---|---|---|
James Buchanan of PA (1791–1868) |
|
| John Breckinridge of KY (1821–1875) |
Opponent(s) John Frémont (Republican) Millard Fillmore (Know Nothing) |
| Opponent(s) William Dayton (Republican) Andrew Donelson (Know Nothing) |
Presidential nominee | 1860 (lost) [5] | Vice presidential nominee | |
---|---|---|---|
Stephen Douglas of IL (1813–1861) |
|
| Herschel Johnson of GA (1812–1880) |
Opponent(s) Abraham Lincoln (Republican) John Breckinridge (Southern Democrats) John Bell (Constitutional Union) |
| Opponent(s) Hannibal Hamlin (Republican) Joe Lane (Southern Democrats) Edward Everett (Constitutional Union) |
Presidential nominee | 1864 (lost) | Vice presidential nominee | |
---|---|---|---|
George McClellan of NJ (1826–1885) |
|
| George Pendleton of OH (1825–1889) |
Opponent(s) Abraham Lincoln (National Union) |
| Opponent(s) Andrew Johnson (National Union) |
Presidential nominee | 1868 (lost) | Vice presidential nominee | |
---|---|---|---|
Horatio Seymour of NY (1810–1886) |
|
| Francis Blair of MO (1821–1875) |
Opponent(s) Ulysses S. Grant (Republican) |
| Opponent(s) Schuyler Colfax (Republican) |
Presidential nominee | 1872 (lost) | Vice presidential nominee | |
---|---|---|---|
Horace Greeley of NY (1811–1872) |
|
| Gratz Brown of MO (1826–1885) |
Opponent(s) Ulysses S. Grant (Republican) |
| Opponent(s) Henry Wilson (Republican) |
Presidential nominee | 1876 (lost) | Vice presidential nominee | |
---|---|---|---|
Samuel Tilden of NY (1814–1886) |
|
| Thomas Hendricks of IN (1819–1885) |
Opponent(s) Rutherford Hayes (Republican) |
| Opponent(s) William Wheeler (Republican) |
Presidential nominee | 1880 (lost) | Vice presidential nominee | |
---|---|---|---|
Winfield Hancock of PA (1824–1886) |
|
| William English of IN (1822–1896) |
Opponent(s) James Garfield (Republican) James Weaver (Greenback) |
| Opponent(s) Chester Arthur (Republican) Barzillai Chambers (Greenback) |
Presidential nominee | 1884 (won), 1888 (lost), 1892 (won) | Vice presidential nominee | |
---|---|---|---|
Grover Cleveland of NY (1837–1908) |
|
| Thomas Hendricks of IN (1819–1885) (1884) |
| Allen Thurman of OH (1813–1895) (1888) | ||
| Adlai Stevenson of IL (1835–1914) (1892) | ||
Opponent(s) James Blaine (Republican) St. John (Prohibition) Benjamin Butler (Greenback) |
| Opponent(s) John Logan (Republican) William Daniel (Prohibition) Absolom West (Greenback) | |
Opponent(s) Benjamin Harrison (Republican) Clinton Fisk (Prohibition) Alson Streeter (Union Labor) |
| Opponent(s) Levi Morton (Republican) John Brooks (Prohibition) Charles Cunningham (Union Labor) | |
Opponent(s) Benjamin Harrison (Republican) James Weaver (Populist) John Bidwell (Prohibition) |
| Opponent(s) Whitelaw Reid (Republican) James Field (Populist) James Cranfill (Prohibition) |
Presidential nominee | 1896 (lost), 1900 (lost) | Vice presidential nominee | |
---|---|---|---|
William Jennings Bryan of NE (1860–1925) |
|
| Arthur Sewall of ME (1835–1900) (1896) |
| Adlai Stevenson of IL (1835–1914) (1900) | ||
Opponent(s) William McKinley (Republican) |
| Opponent(s) Garret Hobart (Republican) Thomas E. Watson (Populist) | |
Opponent(s) William McKinley (Republican) John Woolley (Prohibition) |
| Opponent(s) Theodore Roosevelt (Republican) Henry Metcalf (Prohibition) |
Presidential nominee | 1904 (lost) | Vice presidential nominee | |
---|---|---|---|
Alton Parker of NY (1852–1926) |
|
| Henry Davis of WV (1823–1916) |
Opponent(s) Theodore Roosevelt (Republican) Gene Debs (Socialist) Silas Swallow (Prohibition) |
| Opponent(s) Charles Fairbanks (Republican) Ben Hanford (Socialist) George Carroll (Prohibition) |
Presidential nominee | 1908 (lost) | Vice presidential nominee | |
---|---|---|---|
William Jennings Bryan of NE (1860–1925) |
|
| John Kern of IN (1849–1917) |
Opponent(s) William Taft (Republican) Gene Debs (Socialist) Eugene Chafin (Prohibition) |
| Opponent(s) Jim Sherman (Republican) Ben Hanford (Socialist) Aaron Watkins (Prohibition) |
Presidential nominee | 1912 (won), 1916 (won) | Vice presidential nominee | |
---|---|---|---|
Woodrow Wilson of NJ (1856–1924) |
|
| Thomas Marshall of IN (1854–1925) |
Opponent(s) William Taft (Republican) Theodore Roosevelt (Progressive) Gene Debs (Socialist) Eugene Chafin (Prohibition) |
| Opponent(s) Nicholas Butler (Republican) Hiram Johnson (Progressive) Emil Seidel (Socialist) Aaron Watkins (Prohibition) | |
Opponent(s) Charles Hughes (Republican) Allan Benson (Socialist) Frank Hanly (Prohibition) |
| Opponent(s) Charles Fairbanks (Republican) Kirk Kirkpatrick (Socialist) Ira Landrith (Prohibition) |
Presidential nominee | 1920 (lost) | Vice presidential nominee | |
---|---|---|---|
James Cox of OH (1870–1957) |
|
| Franklin D. Roosevelt of NY (1882–1945) |
Opponent(s) Warren G. Harding (Republican) Gene Debs (Socialist) Parley Christensen (Farmer-Labor) |
| Opponent(s) Calvin Coolidge (Republican) Stedy Stedman (Socialist) Max Hayes (Farmer-Labor) |
Presidential nominee | 1924 (lost) | Vice presidential nominee | |
---|---|---|---|
John Davis of WV (1873–1955) |
|
| Charles Bryan of NE (1867–1945) |
Opponent(s) Calvin Coolidge (Republican) Robert La Follette (Progressive) |
| Opponent(s) Charles Dawes (Republican) Burton Wheeler (Progressive) |
Presidential nominee | 1928 (lost) | Vice presidential nominee | |
---|---|---|---|
Al Smith of NY (1873–1944) |
|
| Joe Robinson of AR (1872–1937) |
Opponent(s) Herbert Hoover (Republican) |
| Opponent(s) Charles Curtis (Republican) |
Presidential nominee | 1932 (won), 1936 (won), 1940 (won), 1944 (won) | Vice presidential nominee | |
---|---|---|---|
Franklin D. Roosevelt of NY (1882–1945) |
|
| Jack Garner of TX (1868–1967) (1932, 1936) |
| Henry Wallace of IA (1888–1965) (1940) | ||
| Harry S. Truman of MO (1884–1972) (1944) | ||
Opponent(s) Herbert Hoover (Republican) Norman Thomas (Socialist) |
| Opponent(s) Charles Curtis (Republican) James Maurer (Socialist) | |
Opponent(s) Alf Landon (Republican) William Lemke (Union) |
| Opponent(s) Frank Knox (Republican) Thomas O'Brien (Union) | |
Opponent(s) Wendell Willkie (Republican) |
| Opponent(s) Charles L. McNary (Republican) | |
Opponent(s) Thomas Dewey (Republican) |
| Opponent(s) John Bricker (Republican) |
Presidential nominee | 1948 (won) | Vice presidential nominee | |
---|---|---|---|
Harry S. Truman of MO (1884–1972) |
|
| Alben Barkley of KY (1877–1956) |
Opponent(s) Thomas Dewey (Republican) Strom Thurmond (Dixiecrat) Henry Wallace (Progressive) |
| Opponent(s) Earl Warren (Republican) Fielding Wright (Dixiecrat) Glen Taylor (Progressive) |
Presidential nominee | 1952 (lost), 1956 (lost) | Vice presidential nominee | |
---|---|---|---|
Adlai Stevenson II of IL (1900–1965) |
|
| John Sparkman of AL (1899–1985) (1952) |
| Estes Kefauver of TN (1903–1963) (1956) | ||
Opponent(s) Dwight D. Eisenhower (Republican) |
| Opponent(s) Richard Nixon (Republican) | |
|
Presidential nominee | 1960 (won) | Vice presidential nominee | |
---|---|---|---|
John F. Kennedy of MA (1917–1963) |
|
| Lyndon B. Johnson of TX (1908–1973) |
Opponent(s) Richard Nixon (Republican) Harry F. Byrd (Southern Democrats) |
| Opponent(s) Henry Cabot Lodge Jr. (Republican) Strom Thurmond (Southern Democrats) |
Presidential nominee | 1964 (won) | Vice presidential nominee | |
---|---|---|---|
Lyndon B. Johnson of TX (1908–1973) |
|
| Hubert Humphrey of MN (1911–1978) |
Opponent(s) Barry Goldwater (Republican) |
| Opponent(s) William E. Miller (Republican) |
Presidential nominee | 1968 (lost) | Vice presidential nominee | |
---|---|---|---|
Hubert Humphrey of MN (1911–1978) |
|
| Edmund Muskie of ME (1914–1996) |
Opponent(s) Richard Nixon (Republican) George Wallace (American Independent) |
| Opponent(s) Spiro Agnew (Republican) Curtis LeMay (American Independent) |
Presidential nominee | 1972 (lost) | Vice presidential nominee | |
---|---|---|---|
George McGovern of SD (1922–2012) |
|
| Tom Eagleton of MO (1929–2007) (1972) [12] |
| Sargent Shriver of MD (1915–2011) (1972) | ||
Opponent(s) Richard Nixon (Republican) John G. Schmitz (American Independent) |
| Opponent(s) Spiro Agnew (Republican) Thomas J. Anderson (American Independent) |
Presidential nominee | 1976 (won), 1980 (lost) | Vice presidential nominee | |
---|---|---|---|
Jimmy Carter of GA (born 1924) |
|
| Walter Mondale of MN (1928–2021) |
Opponent(s) Gerald Ford (Republican) |
| Opponent(s) Bob Dole (Republican) | |
Opponent(s) Ronald Reagan (Republican) John B. Anderson (Independent) Ed Clark (Libertarian) |
| Opponent(s) George H. W. Bush (Republican) Patrick Lucey (Independent) David Koch (Libertarian) |
Presidential nominee | 1984 (lost) | Vice presidential nominee | |
---|---|---|---|
Walter Mondale of MN (1928–2021) |
|
| Geraldine Ferraro of NY (1935–2011) |
Opponent(s) Ronald Reagan (Republican) |
| Opponent(s) George H. W. Bush (Republican) |
Presidential nominee | 1988 (lost) | Vice presidential nominee | |
---|---|---|---|
Michael Dukakis of MA (born 1933) |
|
| Lloyd Bentsen of TX (1921–2006) |
Opponent(s) George H. W. Bush (Republican) |
| Opponent(s) Dan Quayle (Republican) |
Presidential nominee | 1992 (won), 1996 (won) | Vice presidential nominee | |
---|---|---|---|
Bill Clinton of AR (born 1946) |
|
| Al Gore of TN (born 1948) |
Opponent(s) George H. W. Bush (Republican) Ross Perot (Independent) |
| Opponent(s) Dan Quayle (Republican) James Stockdale (Independent) | |
Opponent(s) Bob Dole (Republican) Ross Perot (Reform) |
| Opponent(s) Jack Kemp (Republican) Pat Choate (Reform) |
Presidential nominee | 2000 (lost) | Vice presidential nominee | |
---|---|---|---|
Al Gore of TN (born 1948) |
|
| Joe Lieberman of CT (1942–2024) |
Opponent(s) George W. Bush (Republican) Ralph Nader (Green) |
| Opponent(s) Dick Cheney (Republican) Winona LaDuke (Green) |
Presidential nominee | 2004 (lost) | Vice presidential nominee | |
---|---|---|---|
John Kerry of MA (born 1943) |
|
| John Edwards of NC (born 1953) |
Opponent(s) George W. Bush (Republican) |
| Opponent(s) Dick Cheney (Republican) |
Presidential nominee | 2008 (won), 2012 (won) | Vice presidential nominee | |
---|---|---|---|
Barack Obama of IL (born 1961) |
|
| Joe Biden of DE (born 1942) |
Opponent(s) John McCain (Republican) |
| Opponent(s) Sarah Palin (Republican) | |
Opponent(s) Mitt Romney (Republican) |
| Opponent(s) Paul Ryan (Republican) |
Presidential nominee | 2016 (lost) | Vice presidential nominee | |
---|---|---|---|
Hillary Clinton of NY (born 1947) |
|
| Tim Kaine of VA (born 1958) |
Opponent(s) Donald Trump (Republican) Gary Johnson (Libertarian) Jill Stein (Green) |
| Opponent(s) Mike Pence (Republican) Bill Weld (Libertarian) Ajamu Baraka (Green) |
Presidential nominee | 2020 (won) | Vice presidential nominee | |
---|---|---|---|
Joe Biden of DE (born 1942) |
|
| Kamala Harris of CA (born 1964) |
Opponent(s) Donald Trump (Republican) Jo Jorgensen (Libertarian) |
| Opponent(s) Mike Pence (Republican) Spike Cohen (Libertarian) |
Presidential nominee | 2024 (lost) | Vice presidential nominee | |
---|---|---|---|
Kamala Harris of CA (born 1964) |
|
| Tim Walz of MN (born 1964) |
Opponent(s) Donald Trump (Republican) |
| Opponent(s) JD Vance (Republican) |
The 1820 United States presidential election was the ninth quadrennial presidential election. It was held from Wednesday, November 1, to Wednesday, December 6, 1820. Taking place at the height of the Era of Good Feelings, the election saw incumbent Democratic-Republican President James Monroe win reelection without a major opponent. It was the third and the most recent United States presidential election in which a presidential candidate ran effectively unopposed. As of 2024, this is the most recent presidential election where an incumbent president was re-elected who was neither a Democrat nor a Republican, before the Democratic-Republican party split into separate parties. James Monroe's re-election marked the first time in U.S. history that a third consecutive president won a second election. This happened again with Barack Obama's re-election in 2012, following Bill Clinton in 1996 and George W. Bush in 2004, which all three consecutive presidents won their re-election campaigns, which is the only other time any two-term presidents succeded another. Monroe is also the first candidate to receive over 200 electoral votes for president.
The 1832 United States presidential election was the 12th quadrennial presidential election, held from Friday, November 2 to Wednesday, December 5, 1832. Incumbent president Andrew Jackson, candidate of the Democratic Party, defeated Henry Clay, candidate of the National Republican Party.
The 1836 United States presidential election was the 13th quadrennial presidential election, held from Thursday, November 3 to Wednesday, December 7, 1836. In the third consecutive election victory for the Democratic Party, incumbent Vice President Martin Van Buren defeated four candidates fielded by the nascent Whig Party.
The 1860 United States presidential election was the 19th quadrennial presidential election, held on Tuesday, November 6, 1860. In a four-way contest, the Republican Party ticket of Abraham Lincoln and Hannibal Hamlin won a national popular plurality, a popular majority in the North where states had already abolished slavery, and a national electoral majority comprising only Northern electoral votes. Lincoln's election thus served as the main catalyst of the states that would become the Confederacy seceding from the Union. This marked the first time that a Republican was elected president. It was also the first presidential election in which both major party candidates were registered in the same home state; the others have been in 1904, 1920, 1940, 1944, and 2016.
The 1872 United States presidential election was the 22nd quadrennial presidential election, held on Tuesday, November 5, 1872. Despite a split in the Republican Party, incumbent President Ulysses S. Grant defeated Democratic-endorsed Liberal Republican nominee Horace Greeley.
In United States presidential elections, an unpledged elector is a person nominated to stand as an elector but who has not pledged to support any particular presidential or vice presidential candidate, and is free to vote for any candidate when elected a member of the Electoral College. Presidential elections are indirect, with voters in each state choosing electors on Election Day in November, and these electors choosing the president and vice president of the United States in December. Electors in practice have since the 19th century almost always agreed in advance to vote for a particular candidate — that is, they are said to have been pledged to that candidate. In several elections in the 20th century, however, competitive campaigns were mounted by candidates who made no pledge to any presidential nominee before the election. These anomalies largely arose from fissures within the Democratic Party over the issues of civil rights and segregation. No serious general election campaign has been mounted to elect unpledged electors in any state since 1964.
In the United States Electoral College, a faithless elector is generally a party representative who does not have faith in the election result within their region and instead votes for another person for one or both offices, or abstains from voting. As part of United States presidential elections, each state legislates the method by which its electors are to be selected. Many states require electors to have pledged to vote for the candidates of their party if appointed. The consequences of an elector voting in a way inconsistent with their pledge vary from state to state.
The 1872 Democratic National Convention was a presidential nominating convention held at Ford's Grand Opera House on East Fayette Street, between North Howard and North Eutaw Streets, in Baltimore, Maryland on July 9 and 10, 1872. It resulted in the nomination of newspaper publisher Horace Greeley of New York and Governor Benjamin Gratz Brown of Missouri for president and vice president, a ticket previously nominated by the rump Liberal Republican faction convention meeting, also held in Baltimore's newly built premier Opera House of nationally well-known theatre owner/operator John T. Ford of the major Republican Party, which had already re-nominated incumbent President Ulysses S. Grant of the regular Republicans for another term.
The election of the president and for vice president of the United States is an indirect election in which citizens of the United States who are registered to vote in one of the fifty U.S. states or in Washington, D.C., cast ballots not directly for those offices, but instead for members of the Electoral College. These electors then cast direct votes, known as electoral votes, for president and for vice president. The candidate who receives an absolute majority of electoral votes is then elected to that office. If no candidate receives an absolute majority of the votes for president, the House of Representatives elects the president; likewise if no one receives an absolute majority of the votes for vice president, then the Senate elects the vice president.
In the 2016 United States presidential election, ten members of the Electoral College voted or attempted to vote for a candidate different from the ones to whom they were pledged. Three of these votes were invalidated under the faithless elector laws of their respective states, and the elector either subsequently voted for the pledged candidate or was replaced by someone who did. Although there had been a combined total of 155 instances of individual electors voting faithlessly prior to 2016 in over two centuries of previous US presidential elections, 2016 was the first election in over a hundred years in which multiple electors worked to alter the result of the election.