California became the first state to have elected women to occupy both of its Senate seats due to the victories of Dianne Feinstein and Barbara Boxer. No incumbent US President has lost since 1992. Independent candidate Ross Perot secured nearly 19 percent of the vote—the highest percentage of any third-party candidate in a U.S. presidential election in 80 years. In the presidential election, Democratic Governor Bill Clinton of Arkansas defeated Republican incumbent President George H. W. Bush and Texas businessman Ross Perot. Results of the American presidential election, 1992. Independent candidate Ross Perot secured nearly 19 percent of the vote—the highest percentage of any third-party candidate in a U.S. presidential election in 80 years. .mw-parser-output .legend{page-break-inside:avoid;break-inside:avoid-column}.mw-parser-output .legend-color{display:inline-block;min-width:1.25em;height:1.25em;line-height:1.25;margin:1px 0;text-align:center;border:1px solid black;background-color:transparent;color:black}.mw-parser-output .legend-text{} Democratic gain Democratic hold, Democratic gain Democratic hold With Clinton suffering from personal scandals and facing a tough primary race and with Bush weakened by a faltering economy, the conditions were ripe for a third-party bid. Perot's independent candidacy won the largest share of the popular vote of any third party or independent candidate since Theodore Roosevelt's 1912 candidacy. Perot led in several polls taken in June 1992, but severely damaged his candidacy by temporarily dropping out of the race in July. While the redistricting after the 1980 Census had resulted in 17 majority-black districts and 10 majority-Hispanic districts, 32 and 19 such districts, respectively, were drawn after the 1990 Census. Democratic presidential nominee Bill Clinton (right) and his running mate, Al Gore, raising their arms at the end of the Democratic National Convention in New York City, July 16, 1992. Republicans picked up one seat in the regularly-scheduled elections, while Democrats picked up one seat in a special election. Bush's popularity after his success in the Gulf War dissuaded high-profile Democratic candidates like Mario Cuomo from entering the 1992 Democratic primaries. Perot initially earned widespread popularity, particularly among voters dissatisfied with traditional party politics. Clinton’s popularity soon rebounded, and, though Tsongas won in New Hampshire, Clinton scored a strong second-place showing—a performance for which he labeled himself the “Comeback Kid.” Clinton would nearly sweep the Southern primaries held on March 10—the so-called Super Tuesday—and by mid-March Tsongas would withdraw from the contest. Announcing our NEW encyclopedia for Kids! Clinton easily won the electoral college with 370 electoral votes, but took just 43 percent of the popular vote, the fourth-lowest share of any victorious presidential candidate. Democratic victories over Republicans John F. Seymour (in the special California race) and Bob Kasten (of Wisconsin) were cancelled out by the defeats of Democrats Wyche Fowler (of Georgia) and Terry Sanford (of North Carolina). Though they won the national popular vote for the House of Representatives by a margin of five percentage points,[5] Democrats lost a net of nine seats in the House to the Republicans, in part due to redistricting following the 1990 Census. Democrats won control of the presidency and both chambers of Congress for the first time since the Republican victory in the 1980 elections. The three main people running were: George H. W. Bush, a Republican from Texas and the President; Bill Clinton, who was a Democrat and Governor of Arkansas; and Ross Perot an Independent candidate. Clinton’s support of international trade agreements (e.g., the North American Free Trade Agreement) and his willingness to cut spending on social programs to reduce budget…, Bush ran a lacklustre campaign for reelection in 1992. The 34 Seats in the Senate Class III were up for election. The results of the 1992 U.S. presidential election are provided in the table. Our editors will review what you’ve submitted and determine whether to revise the article. But, with Gore’s centrist credentials added to those of Clinton’s, the move was politically astute, inoculating the Democrats against charges of being tax-and-spend liberals and, in particular, weak on defense (Gore had been one of only 10 Democratic senators to authorize the use of force against Iraq in 1991 in the Persian Gulf War). [3] Democrats won the national popular vote for the House of Representatives by a margin of five percentage points, but Republicans won a net gain of nine seats. He faced a fierce early challenge from Patrick Buchanan in the Republican primary and then lost votes in the general election to third-party candidate Ross Perot. This page was last changed on 7 November 2020, at 17:10. In the electoral college, Clinton’s victory was more dramatic: he captured 370 electoral votes to Bush’s 168, thus ending 12 years of Republican control of the presidency. The redrawn districts were notable for the increase in majority-minority districts, drawn as mandated by the Voting Rights Act. United States presidential election of 1992. Democrats won a net gain of two gubernatorial seats in the 1992 elections. Updates? In the 1992 presidential election, Democrat Bill Clinton, the governor of Arkansas, defeated Bush in a race in which independent candidate Ross Perot won 19 percent of the popular vote—more than any third candidate had received since Theodore Roosevelt in 1912.…, In 1992 Arkansas Governor Bill Clinton recaptured the White House for the Democrats by defeating Bush and third-party candidate Ross Perot. Buchanan led an insurgent campaign against Bush, capturing nearly 37 percent of the vote in the New Hampshire primary. Clinton defeated former California Governor Jerry Brown and former Massachusetts Senator Paul Tsongas to take the Democratic nomination. Clinton swept the Northeastern United States, marking the start of Democratic dominance in the region in presidential elections, while also performing well in the Midwest and the West. Bill Clinton was the winner of the election. Clinton got 370 Electoral votes, Bush got 168, and Perot got 0. Still, Brown continued to challenge Clinton, who had not amassed the requisite number of delegates to secure the Democratic nomination until June 2, when he defeated Brown in California and several other states. For the results of the subsequent election, see United States presidential election of 1996. Bill Clinton was the winner of the election. Which dissident political faction nominated former U.S. president Theodore Roosevelt for the presidency in 1912? Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). US Presidential Election 2020: Donald Trump wins Florida but Biden can still dream. With Iowa Sen. Tom Harkin running, the major Democratic candidates skipped the Iowa caucuses. Get exclusive access to content from our 1768 First Edition with your subscription. Please select which sections you would like to print: Corrections? Prior to 2020, this was the last election where a candidate won the presidency without winning Florida. He reached out to both Democrats and Republicans, hiring former operatives from each party to advise his campaign. One of the first indicators of Bush's re-election challenge was a poll showing him losing to Texas billionaire Ross Perot in May.[4]. The Democratic race was intense. Presidential Candidate Vice Presidential Candidate Political Party Popular Vote Electoral Vote; William Clinton: Albert Gore Jr. Democratic: 44,909,806: 43.01%: 370: 68.8%: George Bush: J. Danforth Quayle: Republican: 39,104,550: 37.45%: 168: 31.2%: H. Ross Perot: James Stockdale: Independent: 19,743,821: 18.91%: 0: 0.0%: Andre Marrou: Nancy Lord: Libertarian: 290,087: 0.28%: 0: 0.0%: Other - - 378,347: … Democrat Carol Moseley Braun (of Illinois), became the first African-American woman in the United States Senate. The election took place after the redistricting that resulted from the 1990 Census. In a subsequent interview watched by millions of viewers on the television news program 60 Minutes, Clinton and his wife admitted to having marital problems. Clinton, a leader of the centrist Democratic Leadership Council, established himself as the front-runner for the Democratic nomination by sweeping the Super Tuesday primaries. For the results of the previous election, see United States presidential election of 1988. Bush could have lost the election for several reasons. United States presidential election of 1992, American presidential election held on Nov. 3, 1992, in which Democrat Bill Clinton defeated incumbent Republican Pres. 1992 United States House of Representatives elections, 1992 United States gubernatorial elections, "Party Division in the Senate, 1789-Present", "Statistics of the Presidential and Congressional Election of November 3, 1992", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=1992_United_States_elections&oldid=983385757, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, This page was last edited on 13 October 2020, at 23:28. The United States presidential election of 1992 was on November 3, 1992 in the United States. Perot won 18.9% of the popular vote, the highest share of the vote won by a candidate outside of the two major parties since 1912. Democrats won control of the presidency and both chambers of Congress for the first time since the Republican victory in the 1980 elections. Conservative Columnist Pat Buchanan of Virginia, Former Governor of Minnesota Harold Stassen, Former Senator Paul Tsongas of Massachusetts, Former Senator Eugene McCarthy of Minnesota, From Simple English Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia, 1992 popular vote by states (with bar graphs), https://simple.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=1992_United_States_presidential_election&oldid=7172574, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License. https://www.britannica.com/event/United-States-presidential-election-of-1992, The New York Times - The 1992 Elections: President -- The Overview; Clinton Captures Presidency with Huge Electoral Margin; Wins a Democratic Congress, United States presidential election of 1988, United States presidential election of 1996, Presidency of the United States of America. The 1992 United States elections elected state governors, the national president, and members of the 103rd United States Congress. In September, however, Perot returned to the campaign trail and selected former admiral James Stockdale as his vice presidential running mate. The three main people running were: George H. W. Bush, a Republican from Texas and the President; Bill Clinton, who was a Democrat and Governor of Arkansas; and Ross Perot an Independent candidate. Bush defeated a primary challenge from commentator, and former Reagan White House Director of Communications Pat Buchanan to earn re-nomination as the Republican candidate.[2]. United States presidential election of 1992, American presidential election held on Nov. 3, 1992, in which Democrat Bill Clinton defeated incumbent Republican Pres. The economy was in recession and Bush's greatest strength, foreign policy, was regarded as much less important following the dissolution of the Soviet Union and the end of the Cold War and the relatively peaceful climate in the Middle East after the Gulf War. His famous "Read my lips: no new taxes" quip was used effectively by his primary challenger Pat Buchanan and later by Governor Bill Clinton. What was initially viewed as an easy win for the incumbent, George H. W. Bush, turned out quite differently. Typically, incumbent presidents face little opposition in securing renomination, but Bush faced a stiff early challenge from conservative commentator Pat Buchanan. The front-runner appeared to be Clinton, but other candidates, in particular former California governor Jerry Brown and former Massachusetts senator Paul Tsongas, hoped to secure the nomination. Republican gain Republican hold. The United States presidential election of 1992 was on November 3, 1992 in the United States. He broke his promise of "Read my lips: no new taxes" by increasing taxes during his term. The election took place after the redistricting that resulted from the 1990 Census. George H.W. Billionaire Ross Perot launched an independent campaign, emphasizing his opposition to the North American Free Trade Agreement and his plan to reduce the national debt. At the Republican National Convention in 1988, Bush had pledged to the delegates that he would resist any tax increases, giving his famous “read my lips” pledge. Omissions? Clinton chose as his running mate Tennessee Sen. Al Gore—a curious choice, as both hailed from the South. Meanwhile, Bush’s Democratic opponent, Bill Clinton of Arkansas, hammered away at the issue of…. A small number of seats changed hands in the Senate, but Democrats retained a comfortable majority. A person running for president will need to get 270 to win. The 1992 United States elections elected state governors, the national president, and members of the 103rd United States Congress. Clinton won a plurality in the popular vote and a majority of the electoral vote, breaking a streak of three straight Republican victories. Democrats and Republicans each defended gubernatorial positions in six states in 1992. He defeated former & future Governor of California Jerry Brown, former Massachusetts Senator Paul Tsongas, and other candidates to win his party's nomination, and chose Senator Al Gore as his running mate. George Bush. But in 1990, in an attempt to cope with a soaring budget deficit, Bush reneged on that pledge, earning him the enmity of his conservative supporters and the distrust of many voters who had backed him in 1988. Be on the lookout for your Britannica newsletter to get trusted stories delivered right to your inbox. The election of four new Democratic women to the Senate was notable (referred to in the press as the "Year of the Woman"). Although he failed to win any electoral votes, Perot found support in every state, and Clinton's home state of Arkansas was the lone state to give a majority of its vote to any candidate. Polls in May and June showed Perot leading both Clinton and Bush, but in July, with Clinton’s support increasing on the eve of the Democratic National Convention, Perot unexpectedly dropped from the race. In February, while a guest on CNN’s Larry King Live, billionaire businessman Ross Perot announced that he would run for president if supporters would file petitions enabling him to be on the ballot in all 50 states. Just before the New Hampshire primary, Clinton’s campaign was nearly derailed by widespread press coverage of his alleged 12-year affair with an Arkansas woman, Gennifer Flowers. Some of his most well-known accomplishments during his presidency came from his foreign policy, and because of the Cold War and Gulf War being over, foreign policy became a smaller issue, as the economy became a bigger issues, since the economy was bad.