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US Election
100 years of reporting US elections
The Irish Times reports of the US election results over the past 100 years reflect the great ebb and flow in American politics. They also mirror the changes in newspaper production, from the days when ads covered page 1, back in 1916, to the appearance of colour printing by 2004, and the continuing evolution of Irish Times design, reflected in this week’s front page. The following are The Irish Times US election results pages spanning the past 100 years.
1916: Alongside many reports about the progress of the first World War on p7, the report stating that Woodrow Wilson had been re-elected US president, is headlined, “United States Presidency”.
1920: Under a headline “The presidential contest” on page 5, The Irish Times reports on the election of Republican senator Warren Harding, as US president. It features alongside many reports of killings and reprisals throughout Ireland.
1924: Under the headline, “Mr Coolidge re-elected” on p7, The Irish Times reports on Republican Calvin Coolidge’s election as president.
1928: The election of Republican president Herbert Hoover is reported under the headline “Women return Mr Hoover”, on page 7 of The Irish Times.
1932: Under the headline “Democrats sweep the board” on page 7, it is reported that Franklin D Roosevelt is assured of election as the Democrats obtain 472 votes in the electoral college, as against 59 for the Republicans.
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1936: Victory is conceded early to Franklin D Roosevelt. He is elected for a second term, as voters decide fate of the New Deal.
1940: Franklin D Roosevelt is elected for a third term as US president. At a time when ads appeared on the front page of newspapers, major stories appeared towards the back of the newspaper, in this case on page 5.
1944: Franklin D Roosevelt is re-elected for a fourth term as US president.
1948: Harry Truman is elected president after a close contest with his Republican opponent, governor Thomas Dewey.
1952: Dwight Eisenhower is elected president, with a slender Republican majority in the new Congress.
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1956: President Eisenhower’s election for a second term is overshadowed on page 1 by the Anglo-French ceasefire in Egypt.
1960: Senator John F Kennedy is assured victory over his Republican
rival, vice-president Richard Nixon, The Irish Times reports in a 5.30am edition.
1964: Lyndon Baines Johnson wins a smashing victory over Senator Barry Goldwater, The Irish Times reports in a special 5am edition.
1968: Richard Nixon, president-elect, calls for reconciliation between political opponents after his close and hard-won victory
1972: Richard Nixon is re-elected US president by a huge majority, The Irish Times reports in a special 6am edition.
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1976: Jimmy Carter is elected president, amid near panic among top
Republicans and business leaders in Washington and Wall Street that the
“nobody from Georgia” will move into the White House on January 20th.
1980: Ronald Reagan is elected president, defeating outgoing president Jimmy Carter, in a sweeping victory that pollsters failed to detect.
1984: Ronald Reagan is re-elected president with a massive vote, winning across all areas of the US.
1988: George Bush elected president, overwhelming his Democratic challenger, governor Michael Dukakis.
1992: Bill Clinton is elected president of the United States, in the biggest Democratic victory for over a quarter of a century and breaking a 12-year Republican hold.
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1996: Bill Clinton defeats Bob Dole to become the first Democratic president to win re-election for a second term since Franklin D Roosevelt, 60 years before.
2000: Vote recounts in Florida indicate that Governor George Bush is on track to become US president.
2004: George Bush is re-elected US president, pledging to work for the trust of all Americans and to wage the war on terror.
2008: Barack Obama is elected US president in a sweeping victory over John McCain.
2012 Barack Obama is re-elected US president, stating in his acceptance speech: “We are an American family and we rise or fall together as one nation and as one people.”
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2016: Donald Trump elected after divisive, bitter campaign, defeating Hillary Clinton.
